Uchiha Legacy
by MagnumSTL
Summary: In the Village Hidden in the Clouds, a young man will rise up and face his destiny to face the man who betrayed and destroyed his clan. His name, Ushido Uchiha.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own rights to Naruto. All rights belong to Misashi Kishimoto. **

**So… here's my first Fan Fiction. Hope you guys enjoy it. If you're here thanks to my mate Lambhuna then thanks for giving me the chance. If you haven't seen his yet, I suggest you go check him out. But anyway, here it is.**

**Naruto: Uchiha Legacy. **

**Intro.**

On this dark night, the blood of many fills the streets. The stench of blood hangs in the air; the taste just touches the tongue. High above the blood soaked streets, sits the shadow of a tall, dark figure. Itachi Uchiha, the prodigy of the Uchiha clan. His eyes closed as he takes in the scene of death and agony. He looks down to see a young woman, clutching to what appears to be a child. He sighs as he draws his blade and leaps down to greet them.

"It seems my eyes had betrayed me for a short while. I had thought no one escaped my sight. You however, have." He said as he watches them both closely. He closes his eyes and then quickly opens them to reveal his Mangekyou. The young woman kneels at Itachi's feet.

"Why have you done this?" She pleads to him.

"Why? Because I thought it would be a great test of my strength. And it has. I have proven enough. One other shall live this night. Young man, do you hate me for what has been done here? If you do, that is good." He slowly bends down to the child. "I will let you live, but you must stay out of sight from my accomplice. Go to the Raikage of the village hidden in the clouds. There you will live your life, until you are ready. When you are, you will find this place." He bends down closer to the child and widens his eyes. The child looks back at Itachi and suddenly falls to his knees. He screams as loud as he can as images of a forested area burns into his head.

"When your eyes have truly opened, find this place." Itachi closes his eyes again and looks up to the woman. "Go to the Village hidden in the clouds. There he will live among others and grow in peace. You, unfortunately, cannot live after that. For him to live, you must die."

She nods to Itachi as she then grabs the child and turns to flee the village exits. Itachi sighs as he turns and returns to his place high above the streets. He meditates for a short while as he thinks to himself.

"Hmm, could he really be..?" his thoughts are interrupted by a small chakra presence. Itachi turns his attention to a small child running along the streets. "So it begins." He said as he readied himself for the upcoming events.

Days of running, the young woman and her child are far in to the Land of Lightning. She begins to grow weary from the endless running. She notices the bushes rustle as she passes them. She screams as she clutches her son tightly.

"Damn you I will not let you have him!" she shouts loudly at the bushes as a few Kunai knives come out towards her. She manages to dodge them before she hears a voice call out to her.

"Who are you? What's your business in the Land of Lightning?" they ask her as she slowly loosens her grip on the boy.

"Please, I was told to come to the Land of Lightning to help my son. If you don't take him away from here he will die." She pleads to them. Another voice replies.

"Wait a minute, the Raikage told us to expect someone looking for shelter. Here let us take you both some…"

"No!" she interrupts. "You need to take him and go. If I go too then we'll both die!"

They are silent for a second before finally replying to her.

"Very well. We'll take him. But what do we tell the Raikage?" asked the first voice.

"Tell him… tell him, this boy is Ushido. Ushido Uchiha. The lost Uchiha of the clan." She says as she looks to her sleeping child with a tear in her eyes. The others are silent for a moment before revealing themselves and take the child from her. They nod to her and take their leave to the Village Hidden in the Clouds. The tear slowly falls down her cheek as she watches them leave. She turns back to see a masked man stand before her.

"Brave of you to finally face me, Uchiha woman, but foolish. I wonder, why was Itachi willing to let you live and not think I'd let you escape? No matter, wherever you've hidden that thing you were holding will be found. But here we say our goodbyes."

He draws a Kunai knife from his cloak and raises it above his head. He looks her in the eyes and strikes down, cutting open her throat. As the crimson blood slowly pours from her neck, he cleans the knife and sheaths it again within his blade. In seconds, the woman is dead.

"So, here is the Uchiha prodigy's great plan, dead at my feet. Unfortunate Itachi, you might've had a plan for this one. But I won't let you see it through.

The masked man turns away from the body and takes in the scenery before disappearing leaving only the young woman's body, to soak the grass with her blood.

**Chapter one.**

**Begin the Chunin exams.**

Peacefully, in the heart of the Village hidden in the Clouds, lays a young, well built man. His long black hair just covers his eyes as he sleeps soundly under the small tree he rests himself under. He wears a dark blue t-shirt and dark track suits. His sleep is interrupted by a voice he was hoping to avoid all day.

"Wake up sleepy head. Are you really gonna just stay here all day? Hey, don't try to ignore me! Ushido! Wake up damn you!" she yells in his ears as he tries his very best to ignore the growing headache. "Ushido, I'm serious! If you don't get up now then you're gonna get it!"

He sighs as he finally decides to give in. His dark, grey eyes slowly open as he raises his head to look through the hair covering his sight. He sees his classmate and team mate standing before him. Her long brown hair tied back as usual, eyes more blue than sapphire. He sighs again as he sits himself up.

"Damn it May-Chan, do you have to be so loud? Anyway, it's our day off. Why do we have to do anything yet?" he signals her to leave yet she doesn't seem to get the hint. He leans back down to attempt to return to sleep, while preparing himself for any inconveniences. She smiles as she raises her fist to strike down on his head but is blocked by this cool stance he keeps as he remains laying on the ground.

"Hmph… anyway, you're wrong. Master Darui has called for us to meet him outside the city gates. Koken is already on his way there." She smiles at him with a slight wink. "So maybe we can slowly make our way…"

"Koken! I'll beat him there. C'mon May, we gotta move!" He interrupts as he rushes off towards the gate, leaving May alone by the tree to sulk for a second. After her slight second of sulking, she decides to run off and join the others at the gate.

Ushido, still rushing towards the gates, spots Master Darui waiting for him and the others. Not far ahead of him is none other than Koken. Short brown hair and a long red shirt. White track suits as usual and his kunai bag on his waist. Ushido smiles to himself as he gives himself a rush of speed and sprints past Koken. He slows himself down just as he reaches the boarder of the gates. He skids along the floor, stopping himself just before Master Darui. Koken catches up to him, and then followed by May. The three look to each other before placing their attention on their master to hear why he called them on a day off.

"As I'm sure you all know, the Chunin Exams are due to begin down in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Well, I'm giving you guys the chance to prove yourselves in the exams." Their eyes widen as their master smiles to them. "Koken Nihin, Jonetsu Mai and Ushido Uchiha. You are all to enter in the Chunin Exams in one month. I expect to see good results during the exams. I hope you all will become great Chunin. Go off and prepare for the journey to the Village Hidden in the Leaves. We leave within the hour." They all nod as they turn away and head off to prepare themselves.

Back at home, Ushido is hastily backing his things, trying to get everything he can think of that would be necessary for the trip. He looks around his apartment to take in the scene before he leaves for the trip. The unmade bed sitting in the corner of the room just beneath the window and his little kitchen area just opposite the end of the bed. Beside his bed is a little bedside drawer, and atop of this is a picture frame. He goes over to inspect the picture for a minute. In it is a rather young Ushido, along with his Mother and Brother. He smiles as he looks back up and paces the picture back on the bedside drawer. He turns to the door and leaves the apartment, locking the door behind him and heading off back to the gates to meet the others. In the distance he sees Master Darui alone by the Gates. As he approaches his Master smiles and calls to him.

"Seeing as how you lived closer I was hoping you'd be back first Ushido. There's something we need to discuss." He said as he watched Ushido slowly approach him.

"Sure thing Darui Sensei. What's up?" he replied with a slightly quizzing look on his face.

"It's just that, we're going to the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Lord Raikage would prefer it if you kept your name a secret, if you get my meaning." He looks at Ushido with a worried look. Hoping he would understand what he meant. Ushido takes a couple seconds to think before he replies.

"Sure thing Master, I understand." He smiles to Master Darui as he gives a sigh of relief. After a minute more of waiting, they're joined by Koken and May. The all look at each other, chatting in excitement as their Master watches them.

"All right guys. Let's head out before we waste too much daylight. It's about 3 weeks treck to The Leaf." They all nod to their master as they all suddenly disperse in a flash.

Two weeks gone by on the road, they decide to stop and rest for a while. May trying to catch her breath while Ushido and Koken are at their usual rivalries. Annoyed, she stares the two down but they don't seem to notice. They watch each other closely with smiles on their faces, and fire in their eyes.

"Ready Koken?" said Ushido, a smile all the way across his face.

"You know it, Ushido." He returns the smile. Their eyes fixated on each other, not a muscle moved.

"Man, do they ever stop. It's such a drab." Said their master as he watches to see what they'll do next for their usual "Rival's challenge." They're silent for a while, until Ushido finally speaks up.

"So… you decided what it is then?" he asked, the smile still there.

"Of course, this is a test of physical strength. We've been carefully learning our chakra control right? Well, surround your hand with your chakra and we'll cut down a tree. First one to do this, wins." He says as Ushido nods to him.

"Deal, loser goes without food the rest of the day." Replied Ushido.

Instantly, the two flash off to find their tree and begin concentrating their chakra to start cutting down the tree. After a while, Ushido finally surrounds his hands in his chakra and starts to shape and sharpen it. Koken begins the same soon after and the two finally begin to cut away. An hour goes by and the two are only half way through cutting. Ushido makes one final cut and his tree comes falling down. Koken stops as he stares in awe that Ushido was finally able to cut his down. He looks over to Ushido, who stands before him, his arms crossed and a cocky smile across his face.

"Heh, what do you expect from an Uchiha?" he smirks as Koken growls back.

"Uchiha?" a mysterious voice came out from the darkness. "You're just what we want. Surely we'll get a great reward to take you back alive." The voice now closer, a light growl in the voice. From nowhere a burst of wind comes out and cut the surrounding trees. The two are forced back by the blast. Quick to react, Master Darui leaps up and catches the two.

"What the hell? Wind Style?" He said, carefully examining the surrounding area. Suddenly, a man, dressed in a grey fur jacket and white track suits leaps out of the darkness. He throws his arm forward and a burst of wind lashes out towards them. Immediately, Ushido jumps forward, weaving hand seals ending with the Tiger hand seal.

"_Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu" _he shouts as a great ball of fire emits from his mouth. The fire absorbs the wind and grows larger and more powerful. The mysterious ninja leaps out of the way just in time and looks back to see the burning destruction behind him. He looks back up to Ushido, his eyes now changed to red. His eyes widen as he sees Ushidos eyes glow.

"The Sharingan? You've lived in a town miles away from your home and have managed to master a power which would have needed training from a master. How? He shouts at Ushido, a look of fear in his eyes. He thought he'd be ready to face the Sharingan if it ever came up but unfortunately for him, never expected to face it so soon in his nearly ending life.

"This is the power of the Uchiha, don't be so surprised. This is only the two point Sharingan, so it's not fully mastered. But it's enough to keep up with you… you're so slow." He smiles as he makes further hand seals and readies himself.

"Master Darui, I ask that you let me take him alone."

"Ok… but if I think it's getting too heavy I'm stepping in." says his master, a worried look covers his face.

"Very well. Thank you master." Said Ushido. He closes his eyes as he finishes his hand seals in the tiger again. This time instead of a fireball jutsu, he decides to use a jutsu he'd been trying to master for a while.

"_Fire Style: Dragon's Blaze!" _he begins to twirl his hands in circles as a small part of I chakra surrounds his hands. Slowly the chakra begins to catch fire and grows to a great height. Ushido unleashes the burning inferno and controls it's direction towards the Ninja. Unable to see a way out of the attack, the ninja decides to use his Wind style to fly above the inferno and avoid the attack. Immediately, Ushido leaps up to him and strikes at him with a hidden Kunai Knife. Unable to deflect or dodge, the Ninja is struck.

"I missed a vital point on purpose. Next hit, I won't." said Ushido as he takes the knife out from the ninja's chest and raises his leg high. Striking down on the ninja's head, he readies his kunai again. As the ninja hits the ground, he falls down to the ninja, kunai ready in hand. He looks ninja in the eyes and quickly hesitates to strike, leaving him open.

"Heh, big mistake kid. _Wind style: Stormy winds!" _he shouts as a blast of wind pushes Ushido back into a nearby tree. Ushido takes a few seconds to examine the situation.

"_Damn it… this is bad. Maybe I can use this to my advantage though. I know he uses Wind style now so if I mix it with my Fire style I can beat him." _He thought as he quickly examined his enemy. Darui watches carefully.

"Let's finish this quickly, I'd rather not drag this on too long." Said Ushido as he smiles to himself.

"This fight was decided at the start boy, you can't win this!" laughed the ninja. Ushido smiles as he quickly jumps out towards the ninja. He readies his kunai again and lunges at the ninja. As his kunai meets the ninja's shoulder, he feels a stabbing pain in his chest. He looks down to see the ninja's kunai in his chest. He looks back up at the ninja for a second before collapsing at his feet.

"Damn it… that hurts you bast…" before he can finish he hits the ground. The ninja looks up to Darui, who looks back at him in anger.

"Master Darui, what'll we do about…"

"We can't do anything Jonetsu. We'll try and help him after we deal with him. Jonetsu, you support us from here. Koken, you and I will attack him as quickly as…"

"No…" a voice interrupted. "He's mine. I'm gonna beat him. Stay out of it!" shouted Ushido as he slowly pulls himself to his feet. He turns to the ninja while holding his chest tightly.

"Come on… Give me your best attack of Wind style!" he shouts as the ninja smiles. He quickly makes hand seals and unleashes another burst of wind.

"_Wind Style: Stormy Winds!"_ he shouts again as the winds blast Ushido back to another tree. He coughs quickly as he spits out blood.

"Damn it that hurt too. Hey, that all you got? Come on, another!" he shouts.

"Ushido, you idiot, stop this before he actually kills you ya frickin ass!" shouted Koken. The ninja laughs as he brings forth another burst of wind. This time Ushido manages to dodge it. As he does the wind begins to change course and follows him. He looks over to the ninja and sees that he is the one controlling it.

"_Heh… perfect, just what I wanted. If I can just make him follow me correctly." _He thinks as he quickly manoeuvres around the area. He stops just before the ninja as he smiles.

"You know, you should really be careful on where you send your wind. It can be dangerous for you." He smiles as he leaps high over the winds behind him. In the air he quickly makes hand seals once again and smiles at the ninja.

"_Fire style: Fireball Jutsu!" _he shouts as he unleashes a great burst of flame. The fires combine within the winds and increase to a massive inferno. The ninja's eyes widen as he looks at the blazing inferno with great terror. He manages to leap out of the way but doesn't manage to see Ushido behind it, kunai ready in hand again.

"_Damn it, I can't dodge this one. Well played Uchiha, well played. Pray my team doesn't get you. Then you won't be so lucky." _He laughs as he braces for impact with Ushido. As he does, the blade pierces his chest.

"I couldn't afford to hesitate this time. No more, this will be the beginning of a new side of myself." He says as he takes the blade out from the ninja's chest.

"I pierced a vital organ, you won't live much longer." He says as he throws the ninja down to the ground and lands next to him. After a few coughs, the ninja's hand drops and his eyes slowly close. Master Darui slowly approaches him as he carefully watches Ushido's response. Ushido looks up to his master and smiles at his master as he stands to his feet and places the kunai back in his pockets, he then scratches his head as Darui returns the smile.

"Ushido…That was a dangerous game you played, too dangerous." He said quietly as he slowly approached the body. He carefully examines the body and notices the headband wrapped around his waist like a belt.

"A Hidden Sound Ninja? Why is one of them out here alone?" Said Darui as he quickly took his time to further examine the body.

"Damn it… nothing." He sighs.

"Master, what'll we do now?" asked Ushido as he slowly approached Darui.

"We gotta move. If he wasn't alone, his comrades won't be too far behind." He replied as he turned to collect his equipment from the camp. Jonetsu approached Ushido to see if he was ok.

"Ushido, what happened?" she asked, checking his face for any cuts and bruises.

"Nothing, just a Sound Ninja attacked me and Koken. I took care of him though." He smiled, hiding the adrenaline he felt rush though him.

"Sound Ninja? Why would one of them attack you for no reason?"

"I don't know, but we need to get moving."

They all collect their things and leave the area to continue their journey towards Konohagakure village.

It's not long before they reach the village, the place so lively with many ninja from different villages. Not far behind them are more Hidden Cloud ninja. Waiting at the front gate to greet all new ninja are two lively young ninja. One of short pink hair, and bright green eyes and the other of long blond hair half of which is in a ponytail and the other half covers her face.

"Hi there, welcome to Konoha village. I'm Sakura Haruno and this is Ino Yamanaka." Said the pink haired girl.

"We hope you enjoy your stay here and good luck in the Chunin exams. All we need is your team leader sign this sheet for you." Said Ino, handing Darui a sign in sheet.

"Thank you, Ino right? And Sakura?" he said pointing at the two to secondly confirm for himself. They nod as Ino quickly goes over the form.

"Ah, Master Darui and his team. Koken Nihin, Jonetsu Mai and Ushido Shinjo. Ok, thank you and good luck." She sad as the bow to them. The others return a bow and take their leave. As they watch the team leave, Ino turns over to Sakura and giggles.

"He was kinda cute, huh Sakura?" she said with a smile across her face.

"It's strange, there's something about him that seems so familiar. His stance and his walk. It feels burdened with pain. It feels so much like Sasuke. But how could he…" she said as she quietly began to mutter to herself.

"Well it certainly is difficult to pick which one's cuter. Him or Sasuke." She says as she begins to stare off in wonder.

Back with the group, they begin to wander around the village, looking around the busy streets of all the wandering ninja from the village itself and other villages. They stop by a small ramen shop in the middle of town; they enter the shop and take a seat.

"Welcome to Ichiraku Ramen, how can we help you today?" the waitress welcomes them with a great smile. Darui looks up to her before looking further up to examine the menu.

"We'll have 4 Miso Ramen, please?" he replied. He turns to the others to check if that's fine and they nod in return. She then nods as she turns to her father and repeats the order. After a few minutes of waiting, they are presented with their bowls and begin to dig in. Darui takes a quick pause as he turns to his students.

"So… are you guys excited for the exams? You know they're gonna be the most challenging thing you'll have faced so far." He asked as they finish their bowls.

"Of course, this is what you've trained us for. We're ready Master." Said Jonetsu, smiling at her master.

"Yeah, we'll definitely beat this. We can't lose." Said Koken, wiping the ramen juice from his face.

"There's also the other students we have to get past guys… don't forget about them." Said Ushido, pushing his bowl away from him and bowing his head at the waitress to thank her.

"True, but still... I believe you're ready for this. I look forward to seeing you throughout the exams. Well, except for the second one." Said Darui as he chuckles to himself.

"Come on… we gotta go. We were longer than we hoped on the road. The exams start tomorrow." He said as they all stood up and he pays for the food. They all thank Ichiraku and his daughter for the food and take their leave.

On the way to their apartment, they run into three other ninja.

"Excuse me; we're Hidden Grass ninja, here for our first time for the Chunin exams." Said the young ninja as she slowly approaches Darui. Ushido looks at them with a slight hatred in his eyes.

"Ok… and why would you just come to ninja from another village for no reasons?" Asked Darui, carefully examining the ninjas.

"Well we thought it would be good to meet some of the ninjas we'd be facing in the exams. Wanted to be on good terms with as many as we can. No point making enemies of anyone until they give a reason." She replied as he carefully watched her.

"Well ok… it's good to meet you. This is their first year for this too. Good luck to you guys." He replies as he chuckles nervously at her, scratching his head.

"Thank you, you too." She smiles and bows at them as they take their leave. "Well? What do we think?" she asks her team.

"That boy, he's the one who killed Kegou. I'd be careful. There was something spooky about his eyes." Said the Sound Ninja to her left. She grins, watching them walk away.

"I think Lord Orochimaru will be very pleased to see him brought alive. We can kill the others during the exams." She turns and walks away, her team mates follow close behind.

In the apartment Ushido lays back, ready to get an early rest for the little adventure he'll soon face. Jonetsu watches him as he makes himself comfortable in his corner. She smiles as she carefully watches him; Koken slowly leans in towards her.

"Aww… how cute. It's fun watching you look him like that. How is it he's the only one who doesn't see how you feel for him?" He sniggers, making her blush so much she almost turns a new shade of red.

"Shut up Koken! It's because he's always fixated on proving himself the better of the team. Always fixated on beating you." She said as she pushes him away from herself, hoping to get a good punch in the process. Darui chuckles to himself as he watches the arguments between the two. He then draws his attention over to Ushido, still slightly awake. He goes over and sits beside him.

"I've kinda been wondering… why **do** you do your best to beat Koken all the time with the ridiculous challenges?" he asks. Ushido opens his eyes and sits up to level his master. He sighs.

"It's because… because I wanna make sure I can do anything, even the smallest things. If I can prove myself strong, I can begin to find the one person I've wanted to hunt down and question all my life." He stops for a deep breath, obviously a rough subject to speak of.

"Oh yeah? Who would that be?" asked Darui, slightly confused by the answer.

"Itachi Uchiha." He says with fire so deep in his eyes and the hatred in his voice. The room falls silent as they all take time to process his words. Darui looks at him more serious than ever.

"Itachi huh? And what about Sasuke? His own brother. Don't you think Sasuke'd deserve some answers from Itachi?"

"I don't intend to kill Itachi. I just want to know why he betrayed the clan, and left me alive. I need to know what he saw in Me." He said, quietly sliding himself back down.

"If you don't mind Master Darui… I wanna get some sleep." He says, closing his eyes.

"Very well, I think it'd be smart to get some rest now." He signals the others to get ready and head to bed.

The next morning, they all wake up bright and early. Ushido looks around the entire room but can't seem to find Master Darui. The others soon wake up and do the same thing. Ushido interrupts their search and explains that he's nowhere to be seen. He proceeds to make some breakfast for them all. After the food they all set out to find their way to their first exam.

After searching for half an hour, they finally arrive in the correct building. They look around to examine all the faces of the room. A young man sitting on a large dog stands in front of them as they enter. He turns to them and carefully scans their faces. A smile comes across his face.

"Heh, what's this. Hidden Cloud Ninja I can beat in this exam. Let me tell ya somethin' and Akamaru here'll be top dogs in the exam this year." He grins ever so slightly towards Ushido. Ushido returns the grin before rising to his level.

"Oh yeah? Well let me tell you something pal… we're gonna kick ass this year!" he shouts back in his face.

"Oh yeah?" He shouts back as the two begin shouting at each other.

"K...Kiba-Kun, please calm down." Said the young girl next to him as she tried to calm him.

"Please… you'll have better luck calming a screaming baby. Leave it Hinata. Let the proctor take care of it." Said the hooded boy next to her, his hands in his pockets and his head bowed down.

"But… Shino-Kun. We can't let him do this. He could get…"

"Hey, quiet back there. Damn it this is such a drag… why'd Lady Tsunade have to put me in charge?" said an annoyed voice at the front of the room. The sea of students slowly opens up to reveal the proctor at the front of the room.

"Kiba! This crap again? You did this last year. Why do you have to try and find someone to be a rival in the exams?" shouted the proctor.

"Heh, Shikamaru! You're the proctor for the first exam? Well this should be easy." He smirks at Shikamaru at the front.

"Not on your life. Everyone take your seats. You two, sit as far away from each other as you can." He sighs as everyone finds and takes their seats. Ushido looks around to find the others. All so far from his sight in this small room. The other ninja in the room begin handing out sheets of paper.

"Ok, everyone found their seats? Good. This first is a written test. You must answer each question to the best of your abilities. Get less than 90% and you and your team fail the exam. I will be adding new rules every 10 minutes, and it will get worse for you as we go along. The exam will start at 10:00 AM. It is now 09:55."

Everyone takes their time to get ready for the exam to begin. Ushido carefully watching the clock as it slowly counts down for them to begin.

3… 2… 1…

"Ok! The first exam has officially began!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok… so here's Chapter 2 at long last. Thanks to anyone who have stuck around for this. Another thanks to Lambhuna for his support with writing this chapter. Anyway, Enjoy. **

Uchiha Legacy

Chapter Two: Victory in the Forest of Death.

"Ok! The first exam has officially begun." Shouted Shikamaru as the alarm rang. Immediately the entire room turns over their sheets and begins to examine their exam. Ushido carefully scans the page, carefully reading its contents. His thought echo through his head.

"_Question one… I can't answer this. What the hell does this mean? Damn it where's May when you need her?"_ his face suddenly looks completely flushed.

"_Ok… just relax. Think it through. Use the Sharingan? No… Darui Sensei said not to use that. Maybe take a peak of the guy next to me… damn it not worth the risk. Argh!" _ He begins to get more frustrated the more he thinks. Time slowly slips away from him as he slowly feels the pressure pile on him. His thoughts are suddenly interrupted.

"Ok, that's ten minutes! Here's the first additional rule!" shouted Shikamaru from the front of the class.

"_What? Already? How can ten minutes have already gone by? Oh man, if this carries on I'm sure to fail."_ More and more, his frustration grows.

"The first rule: If the Examiners spot any sign of cheating, you will be kicked out straight away. Anybody not willing to face this may leave now, along with your team." Said Shikamaru as he slowly examines the room. A few hands rise here and there with the obvious "forgive me guys." Or the "I'm sorry." A couple tears and angry faces.

"_Damn, guess they couldn't handle that…and that was only the first rule. *sigh* this is such a drag. Oh well… only an hour and twenty minutes to go." _He thought as he carefully looks around to examine the faces of the people still sitting.

Back in Ushido's mind… he shakes off the pressure and decides to carefully look over the questions.

"_Ok, let's take another look at this. Question 5, yeah let's go from there. Calculate the angle of the kunai thrown at… oh crap. I have no idea. I really hope May and Koken are ok." _His mind begins to wonder. Over to Jonetsu, she easily passes through the questions after taking time to work them out.

"_Ok… this is easy, good thing I take the time to study. I sure hope Ushido and Koken are ok. This stuff looks a bit too complicated. Nevertheless I've gotta keep going. Question 5: If ninja A is traveling from Konoha by air at around 50mph towards Kumogakure and Ninja B travelled from Sunagakure to Konoha at 20mph on foot, where on the road would they pass each other? Oh, well that's simple mathematics. Easy!" _She smiles as she easily works out the answer and continues on to the other questions. Proud of herself that she's able to ease through the questions without any problems. Over to Koken, he seems to be carefully examining the questions, thinking them through and answering them without a second thought.

"_Heh… this is so easy. All I have to do is just carefully look at them and the answers are there. I mean Question 5 was a piece of cake. Two ninja travelling from Konoha to Kumogakure, one travelling at 30mph and the other at 20mph. Which one arrives first? That's just easy; obviously the one travelling the fastest would win. Man… and they all said that the Chunin exams would really difficult." _He laughs to himself as he continues to go through the questions. Meanwhile, Ushido continues to struggle with his questions. Now feeling completely out of it his mind has gone. As he begins to regain his concentration on his surroundings.

"Ok that's an hour! Here's the sixth rule." Shouted Shikamaru.

"_What! An hour! Just a second ago ten minutes had gone by! Where the hell did the other fifty minutes go? Wait a sec… maybe I can…" _he slowly takes a look around, a lot more people gone. The pressure begins to overcome him yet again, he stares down, unable to do a single thing. Almost as though he might slip into insanity he begins to bite away at his nails. A small drop of sweat begins to fall down his cheek.

"_Holy crap… Has my mind really been gone that much? Damn it, this is bad really bad. I've gotta…" _His thoughts are interrupted by the young lad next to him raising his hand. His eyes watering as tears fall down his face.

"I… I'm sorry guys. I can't take this, it's too much!" he whimpers as he gets up and makes his way out. As Ushido watches him walk away, he quickly looks down at his desk and notices his neighbour sheet.

"_What the… his questions. They're all completely different than mine. What's going on here?" _He now draws his attention back to his paper, so many different thoughts run through his mind. What could the reasons behind this be? Why were his questions completely different to his neighbours? He panics for a minute while he thinks it through. After a minute or so he calms himself down.

"Damn it, he forgot to turn his sheet over. What a drag… I hope you didn't look now." Said Shikamaru as he quickly grabs the sheet and turns it over. He stares into Ushido's eyes, as if he was piercing into his very soul. Ushido gulps as he shakes his head in response. He manages to let out a small chuckle.

"That's good. Wouldn't want anyone to get the answers the easy way, huh?" he chuckles as he turns away and continues to watch the clock. Ushido gulps again a he looks back down and continues to attempt to answer what he can. Still he can't seem to grasp any of the questions. Time flies by him as he drowns out the world around him. More and more he feels the pressure add on himself, as though the whole room was leaning on him.

"_Just one… can I at least answer just one damn it!" _He slowly begins to lose himself as Shikamaru interrupts his thoughts.

"Alright, final stretch… ten minutes left. Here's the final rule, if you get any question incorrect or miss a question. You fail. Not just for now. Indefinitely, you will not be allowed to come back next year or try again. Am I clear? Now... same again, if you aren't entirely confident then you can leave now and try again next year." He scans the room carefully. More hands raise from their place and more people leave.

"Ok, continue." He carefully examines the room again. "_Seems only nine teams have the guts. Heh, well once the bell rings it's finally over." _He chuckles again to himself. Ushido, shaking in fear, completely stricken by what he'd just done.

"_Damn it! How could I be so stupid? If I don't answer anything in the next… five minutes, I'm done for. Along with May and Koken. Why? Why do I never think things through?"_ Now shaking frantically, a single tear wells in his eye. After a minute he calms down and looks back up at his sheet. He smiles as he sits back and relaxes. As he closes his eyes, the bell rings signalling everyone to stop and put down the pencils.

"Alright, time's up! Only one thing left, you all pass!" he smiles as everyone murmurs in confusion. Shikamaru sighs as he looks down at his feet. He looks back up at everyone.

"This whole test was a trick. The real test was determining if you could be stuck in a situation where things got harder and harder for you. Hence, the extra rules. If you can keep going, even though the odds are against you then you truly are ready. Sure it's good turn tail if things get too hairy, but only if there's no possible way out of his. You need to assess the situation before deciding if you can do it or not. But, that type of thing wasn't in this test. If you carefully examined the questions, the answer is in them. Just like many situations, you'll be stuck against impossible odds, but the answer to success in hidden in the problem." He smiles as he scratches his head. Ushido looks back up to him, still in his relaxed position.

"Heh… I knew something was up. You can't trick me." He chuckles as everyone smiles. Shikamaru watches him in wonder.

"_Heh… wow, so much like Him. But there's also something strange about him. Something dark…" _He shakes the thought from his mind before continuing.

"In any case, you'll be seeing your next proctor soon. She should be…" Before he can finish, the door bursts open and a gust of wind slashes through. As everyone covers their eyes from the wind, a figure jumps through the group and lands just in front of Shikamaru. She throws her fan over her shoulder and greets the others.

"Hi there, I am Temari, and I'll be in charge of the second exam. If you follow me, we'll get going to the next exam." She carefully examines the group and turns to Shikamaru.

"Nine teams huh? I'll see if I can take care of that for you. Let's go!" they all nod as they leave with Temari. Shikamaru sighs as he goes around and collects the sheets. He comes across Ushido's and carefully examines the entire sheet. Only the name had been filled in.

"Heh… exactly like him." He smiles as he continues to collect the sheets.

As the nine teams, led by Temari, head over towards the Forest of Death Kiba quickly takes the time to catch up with Ushido. He chuckles as they make eye contact then winks.

"I was hoping you'd make it through. I really wanna kick your ass in the final exam. It'll be an amazing display. Me an' Akamaru won't go easy on you." He smiles. Ushido returns the smile.

"Don't count on it you and Akamaru will be defeated by my amazing power. I won't hold back either." He chuckled as Kiba carefully examined him, intrigued by what he could possible do.

"Ha ha, well I look forward to it." He laughs as he backs up to his group. Jonetsu carefully take her place next to Ushido. She blushes a little as Ushido looks at her and smiles. His face shines bright in the light; she takes the time to look over his face. His dark, grey eyes shine greatly as his cheeks glisten in the sun. She blushes a bright red watching him.

"What's up May-Chan? You look red… do you want some water?" He asks, smiling again.

"N... no thank you Ushido-kun. I'm ok." She blushes again, embarrassed that he saw.

"Well ok, let me know if you need anything. I'm gonna go and make acquaintances with Kiba's group." He smiles as he backs up to the group. She watches as he talks and laughs with the group, as though he'd been their friend for a while. She saw Hinata blush a bit while they spoke. Jonetsu quickly frowned towards this, afraid that Hinata might steal her Ushido away.

"If you're so jealous, then you should do something. Why don't you tell him how you feel?" asked Koken, slowly approaching her from her blindside. She jumps and turns to him.

"It's just…" she pauses.

"Yeah… What is it?" he asked.

""I just… don't know if he'd feel the same way about me. What if I let my heart out to him and he turns me down. I don't want to have that pain. I'm also worried it'd complicate our friendship."

"Nonsense, I know he cares for you deeply and would gladly take a blow to protect you. The reason me and him train against each other is to help us get stronger. He does it to truly earn the title of his clan name, and to protect the people he holds dear to him." He smiles as he looks on to the front of the group, now realising that he and Jonetsu had lagged behind a bit and Kiba, Ushido, Hinata and Shino had gone past not noticing themselves. Koken looks over to Ushido who is still talking and laughing with the group.

"_Heh… you're gonna go far one day. Surpass so many people, become a great Legacy of your clan. I want to see that day, be by your side as your comrade and your best friend." _He smiles again as Ushido slows his pace and re-joins them.

"Looks like your bonding quite well with the other group, Ushido. Anything interesting you talk about?" he smiles to Ushido as he returns the smile.

"Plenty, he seems to know quite a bit about the Chunin exams. This is their third year in a row. Seems his first year he lost against one of the weakest of his year, or so they thought he was weak. Hinata lost to her cousin Neji Hyuga, a Prodigy of the Hyuga clan. Ironically he was beaten by the same guy who beat Kiba. Shino made it through to the final round but the exams were interrupted by Orochimaru who began to destroy the village. Seemed he failed when the very same "weakling" fought back against Orochimaru's strongest weapon and the third Hokage gave his life to save the village and stop Orochimaru. Last year they were just too late to get a scroll in the second exam. Seems that Kiba decided to just beat up people and didn't notice they had the same scroll as them. By the time they found a scroll, it was too late. They spent their time then trying to escape the place, and avoid all of the creatures in the forest. Apparently they found a body that had been ripped apart. And the forest is exactly where we're going next." Ushido pauses as Koken gulps, nervous all of a sudden from hearing about the forest.

"S… so this place could be dangerous?" Jonetsu asked, also nervous from the information Ushido had gathered. She looks up at Ushido, not a glimpse of fear in his eyes. He looks down at her and smiles to reassure her.

They soon arrive just outside of the forest, Temari stops before the entrance and turns to the group. She carefully examines the group and chuckles.

"Alright this is it, The Forest of Death. We'll rest for one hour then begin. But first I need to explain the objective. First, each team will be given a scroll. On a Heaven scroll and one an Earth scroll. Your objective is to make it to the building at the center of the forest with both scrolls within three days. The trouble is… you'll each only be given one scroll. Which means you'll have to take a scroll from an enemy group." She smiles as she watches the expressions on the other groups.

"But that means only four of the groups can make it through to the final round!" shouted Jonetsu.

"Yeah, the whole point of this is cut us even more. The point is to cut the numbers in half but then there are the dangers of the forest itself." Said Kiba with a smile across his face.

"Correct, which comes to the other thing. You'll need to sign these sheets to show you realize and accept the dangers that come with this part of the exams." She holds up a bunch of papers for the groups. She begins to hand them out as they all carefully read over them. Ushido looks up at Kiba, who is signing the sheet without even reading it. He pauses for a second before taking the pen from Kiba and signing his sheet.

"Heh… not much for reading huh?" Kiba chuckled as Ushido finishes signing the sheet.

"Nah, I don't much wanna read it. Besides, if you're just signing it then I shouldn't hesitate either." Smiled Ushido as Kiba chuckled again while he rubs his nose.

"Fair enough, but I hope you know what you're getting yourself into." He laughs as he turns back to his group.

"You sure about doing that? Looking over this, it seems dangerous." Said Koken as he quickly looks over the sheet again.

"What's wrong Koken? Cold feet already? Look, we have Kiba's group in there and the Grass ninja over there. We'll be fine." Said Ushido with a great smile across his face. Koken chuckles in response as he quickly signs the sheet. The two look at Jonetsu as she turns away, unable to face the piercing eyes of her comrades. After a minute, she gives in and signs.

After almost an hour goes by as the group all sit patiently. Temari calls them all forward to the stand.

"Ok you lot, time to hand in your sheets and collect your scrolls. Step up one group at a time and collect the scroll you're assigned then take your place at your starting gate." She shouts as they all take turns to collect their scrolls. Ushido, Koken and Jonetsu step in and hand the sheets to the ninja in the stall. After looking over the sheets, they hand Jonetsu an Earth Scroll and signal them to leave. Before they leave, Jonetsu places the scroll in here bag. Once they leave, Kiba's group enter and hand their sheets in and collect their scroll.

Ushido, Koken and Jonetsu take their places at gate three as the other groups take their places. As the last group take their place, Temari begins counting down. They all wait in place anxiously.

"You guys ready? This'll be a hell of a dangerous challenge." Said Ushido as he patiently watches the gate.

"Yeah, we're ready for anything. Bring 'em on I say." Said Koken as he chuckled.

"As long as we stick together, we'll do this." Said Jonetsu as she readies herself. Before too long, the time shortly came to an end.

"Alright you guys, the second exam has officially begun! Go!" shouted Temari as the buzzer rings and the gates burst open. In an instant, all of the groups rushed off into the forest. The group rush ahead and leap from tree to tree until they're deep in the forest.

Once they arrive near a clearing, Ushido signals them to stop as he carefully scans the area. He spots something not far from them and signals them to take cover. They all jump to cover as the group in question reveal themselves. A figure riding atop a beast comes out first. Ushido quickly examines it as he quickly notices the figure is Kiba. The others join him as Kiba sniffs the air.

"Heh, you think you can hide from my nose? I memorized your scent the moment we met. Ya can't hide from me, Ushido!" shouted Kiba as he points out their location.

"Woof!" barked Akamaru.

"Not like we really needed you to sniff them out anyway, we do have Hinata's Byakugan after all." Said Shino as he quickly takes his hands from his pockets.

"W… wait Kiba-kun; let's not assume they're enemies yet. Maybe they have the same scroll as us." Protested Hinata.

"Hmph… even if they do have a Heaven scroll. I don't wanna take it from 'em, I wanna fight him in the finals. I'm gonna beat him and finally be the truly powerful one here!" said Kiba as he continues to point at Ushido.

"Wait… a Heaven Scroll? That's what we need too, maybe we can team up. Together we can get the scroll and be done before lunchtime tomorrow." Said Ushido as he signals the others to stand with him. Kiba pauses for a moment as he ponders the offer.

"You have a good point, that way we can both get our scrolls and be finished before everyone else. I like it." Said Kiba as he nods at Ushido. He signals the others to jump down to the others. As he faces Kiba, he feels a strange present while Akamaru growls in the same direction.

"Hmm? What's up Akamaru? Wait… there's someone else here." As he stands up, a kunai blade flies out from the darkness and just scrapes Ushido's cheek. He takes a step back and quickly wipes the blood from his cheek. He carefully examines the darkness as three figure leap out to them. Instantly, Ushido, Kiba and Akamaru jump back and take their stances with their groups. A young man steps forward to address them.

"Sorry to break up the little chat. But we'll be taking one of your Earth Scrolls if you please." He smiled as he extends his arm and opens his hand.

"Like hell!" Kiba shouted as he clenches his fist. "Ya think we'd really just hand over our scroll and just walk off? Ha! Stupid bastard, you don't know who you're talking to. Come on guys, let's kick ass!" he shouts as they all take stance and ready for an attack. Ushido quietly whispers to his team as they both listen carefully.

"Ok guys… I have a plan. Same as Darui Sensei's plan before. May-Chan, you support us from here. Me and Koken will attack at the same time. I hit 'em with a fireball and Koken comes in with a Lightning Lariat. If anything goes wrong, May-Chan will use laser circus she's learned from Cee Sensei. Agreed?" he asks as they both nod. Ushido looks over to Kiba.

"Let us handle this for a sec. If things get hairy, feel free to jump in. Ready guys? Go!" he shouts. In an instant, He and Koken leap forward. Ushido quickly weaves his hand signs and ends the tiger seal.

"_Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"_ he shouts as a great ball of fire bursts forth. The enemy group cover themselves as the leader of the group quickly weaves his own hand seals.

"_Water Style: Water Cloaks."_ In an instant, the three are surrounded by a cloak of water. The fireball impacts on them but evaporates into a cloud of steam. From the steam, Koken jumps out with a stream of electricity surrounding his arm.

"_Lightning Lariat!"_ he shouts as he impacts the three. From the water surrounding them, the lightning quickly travels through and shocks the three. As they all stand there in pain from the lightning coursing through them, Ushido calls back to Jonetsu.

"May-Chan… now!" he shouts as she nods in response.

"Right… _Storm Release: Laser Circus!" _as she extends her arms and opens her hands, a group of laser arrows burst from her hands and pierce the enemy group. Ushido slowly approaches the group.

"How? How can you defeat the likes of us?" asked the ninja.

"Didn't you forget? You're Hidden Wave ninja, naturally water element. All it took was for me to use my fire style to make you bring up your defenses. You'd most likely cover yourselves from assuming we all use fire style in the hopes that you'd easily beat us. Forgetting the Hidden Cloud is naturally Lightning style. Me being the exception, of course. All it took then was a simple use of the Lightning Lariat, which is another natural attack we excel at, to weaken you then finish it off with Laser Circus. Funny, huh? I hate written stuff but I can carefully examine a situation and eliminate it." He laughs as the wave ninja slowly tries to push himself up. "I wouldn't try to move if I were you. You'd only quicken the loss of blood and die quicker. But here." He throws a kunai and cuts the ninja's cheek. "I owed you that." The ninja smiles he closes his eyes. Ushido slowly approaches his body and takes the scroll from his pouch.

"Here… next fight, you owe us." He smiles as he passes the scroll to Kiba. Kiba chuckles as he signals the others to follow.

The next day, they all walk around the forest carefully together. Kiba and Ushido continue to talk. Koken stands beside Shino as they talk together, and Jonetsu with Hinata.

"He really is a good guy isn't he?" said Hinata as she shyly twiddles her fingers.

"Yeah… I noticed you blushed a little when he came over to you guys earlier." She hesitantly said.

"N…N… no it was nothing… he just… pointed something out that I hadn't noticed. I was embarrassed." She said as she blushes.

"Oh, I just thought I had competition, that's all." Laughed Jonetsu as she scratched her head.

"You… like him don't you?" asked Hinata, still twiddling her fingers.

"Yeah, he's stood by me and Koken through thick and thin. He lost his family eight years ago and has lived alone ever since. He's tried to hide his pain but I've seen him sometimes when he's alone. He's hurting and he wants closure from the man who betrayed his family." She said as a small tear slowly fell down her cheek. Hinata spots the tear and quickly stops it as she smiles to Jonetsu.

"You care, that's all he'll need. With you two by his side, he'll be fine with whatever the world throws at him. I too love someone. I've loved him for as long as I can remember. He stood up for me and took a beating for me." She sighs as she places her hand across her chest. Jonetsu watches her before looking back up to Ushido. Over with Koken and Shino, they're happily chatting away.

"So, this forest… how dangerous is it?" said Koken as he nervously scans his surroundings.

"This place is about as dangerous as you'd expect. Why do you think they call it the Forest of Death?" said Shino, hands still in his pocket.

"Good point. Why do you not keep your eyes peeled all around? If this place is as dangerous as you say, then shouldn't you be watching all directions?" he said as he carefully scans over Shino's shoulder.

"Well the thing is… every single one of us are sensory types. Kiba's sense of smell will pick up anything; I have my insects to watch the entire area and Hinata has her Byakugan to watch the area. You can relax, we'll take care of keeping an eye open." Said Shino.

"Well… ok. But how did that other group get a jump on u earlier if you guys are such great sensory type?" he asked.

"Well… to be honest, I did notice them. I was watching Kiba to see what he did. I wouldn't be surprised if he knew they were there and didn't say anything to see if Ushido had noticed." He chuckles.

"Fair enough, Ushido doesn't usually concentrate on chakra presences. He mainly just concentrates on one thing then goes to the next, unless his friends are in danger. Once that happens, he'll kick ass then take names once the bodies are disposed of. Metaphorically, of course." He smiles as they continue on. Before he can say anything else, Shino stops him as he looks ahead to Kiba, who is sniffing the air.

"Kiba?" said Shino, as Kiba looks back to him and nods. Instantly, he and Hinata nod back as Hinata activates her Byakugan. She carefully scans the area as she gasps.

"Three people headed in our direction, they're closing in quickly. Kiba, what'll we do?" she asks while Kiba smiles, rubbing his nose.

"Heh, what do you think we'll do? We kick their ass!" he shouts as he clenches his fist. They take their stance as Ushido and his group take place behind them.

"This one's ours. Leave it to us." He said as he clenches his fist and turns back to the Grass ninja. He quickly smiled as he takes his stance. The Grass ninja watch him carefully as he sits in silence atop Akamaru's back.

"Let's go boy! _Man/ Beast Transformation!_" He shouts as a puff of smoke surrounds them. As the smoke clear, they see Akamaru in the form of Kiba. Kiba laughs as they both jump forward to attack the leader. Hinata and Shino also attack to separate the three.

"Come on Akamaru! _Fang Over Fang!"_ Shouted Kiba as the two begin to spin at great speed. A small tornado surrounds the two as the travel through the air at great speed. They slowly begin to home in on the Grass ninja as she carefully watches them to examine their attack. They both fly out as quick as they can to her but miss the attack and destroy the tree behind her. She leaps high in the air over them and quickly lunges down to them while they've stopped to regain themselves. Akamaru notices the oncoming attack and pushes Kiba out of the way. Before he can do anything, the two collide as a great cloud of dust surrounds them. As the dust clears, only the Grass ninja is seen. Kiba looks around the area frantically to find Akamaru, sniffing the air for his scent. He smiles as he watches the ninja carefully.

"What are you smiling at? It seems your damned mutt has abandoned you. How can you smile after that?" she chuckles as Kiba scoffs in return.

"Heh, you dumbass, haven't you sensed it yet?" he continues to smile as he crouches down on all fours.

"Let's go! _Fang Over Fang!"_ he shouts as he spins again and lunges at her direction. She chuckles as she leaps above him, dodging his attack. Time slows down around her as she carefully watches Kiba below her. Their eyes lock as he quickly smiles and winks at her. Noticing this, her eyes widen as she looks above her. She sees another tornado coming in her direction. Unable to dodge, they collide in mid-air. The strike sends her flying into a nearby tree. Akamaru lands next to Kiba as he changes back to his normal form.

In the meantime, Hinata fights with all her might against her opponent. She carefully watches his movements while examining his chakra points through her Byakugan. She watches carefully for an opening to present itself. Within moment, the opportunity arises.

"_There, he's left his side wide open, time to attack." _ Her thoughts run as she lunges in to attack.

"_Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fist!"_ She shouts as she lunges forward at her opponent. Two sapphire lion heads surround her hands as she strikes her opponent. Hit after hit, she feels his chakra weaken. He falls to the ground, stunned from the barrage of attacks from her. She smiles as she quickly looks around to see how her teammates are faring.

Shino carefully examines his opponent as he communicates with the bugs throughout his body. His opponent attacks as Shino makes no sudden movements. He chuckles to himself as the ninja attempts to attack.

"_Wind style: Great Boom!"_ He shouts as a great blast of wind emits from his hands. Shino barely moves as a black wisp appears before him. He smiles at the wisp as he lifts his hands. The wisp follows his movement carefully. He throws his arms forward as the wisp follows. It slowly creeps up to the ninja as he stares in horror.

"What… what the hell is this!?" he shouts as Shino smiles.

"These are the special bugs that live in my body. They have a special talent for feeding off of chakra. Unfortunate for you, since they've seemed to attach themselves to your body. And you didn't even notice when I told them to do so."

"When did you…"

"Just before you attacked. I told them to creep up from behind before the fight even started. Didn't you think it was odd that your attack seemed a little weak? Guess not, then." He laughs.

"Damn you! Get them off me! Get them off you bastard!" he desperately shouts as he rolls around on the floor.

"Damn it Tsyra… you're such a coward." Said his paralyzed ally.

"Damn it I hat bugs you ass!" he shouts in return, still rolling around. Shino slowly approaches him as a small black wisp rises from Tsyra's pouch with a scroll. Shino takes the scroll and throws it over to Ushido.

"Payback finished. Now let's head off to the central tower and finish this." He says as they all head off as quickly as they can.

They soon arrive at the central tower. As they doors slowly open, they find no sign of anyone else.

"We must be the first here. Seems we get to wait for a while." Said Ushido as he looks around.

"Heh, not quite. Now we get to open the scrolls." Chuckled Kiba, as he quickly takes out the scrolls from his pouch and opens them. Ushido quickly does the same as a puff of smoke surrounds them. As the smoke clears, they see a ninja stand before them with a smile on his face.

"Congratulations, Team Darui and Team Kurenai. You have passed the second test. I will take the scrolls and present them to Temari." He said as he takes the four scrolls from then and disappears in a puff of smoke. The six of them find a place to sit down and wait anxiously for the exam to finish, hoping that there wouldn't be many more to pass. As time goes by, they all chat away as if they had known each other for so long. Kiba and Ushido challenged each other to ridiculous things while the others watch and laugh. For Koken and Jonetsu, it was refreshing to see Ushido get on with someone so easily, while Hinata and Shino find it odd to see two people as frantic as two Jonin ninja in their own village.

As the third day closes to an end, the doors slowly creep open to reveal three figures behind them. The group gasp at the new arrivals as they all grin in return. Ushido growls at the Grass ninja standing before them.

"Well, well, look who we have here. Looks like the final rounds will be a blast."


	3. Chapter 3

**So here's Chapter 3 for you guys. Enjoy.**

Uchiha Legacy.

Chapter 3: One Month.

The six stand startled at the recent arrivals. Ushido watches them carefully, grinding his teeth. Koken and Jonetsu take a defensive stance beside each other, as do Shino and Hinata. Kiba and Akamaru stand ready next to Ushido, ready to do their famous Fang over Fang.

"What's with all the hostility? The test's over so we don't need to be at each other's throats. Besides… why would we attack after that display you put on in the forest? You showed us you were obviously stronger." She smiles as she stares into Ushido's eyes, glaring at him as he returns the same look.

"She has a point, Ushido-Kun," said Jonetsu, lowering her guard. "We showed them we can beat them so why should they even try attack? Besides… if they attack outside of an exam where fighting is allowed, then they'll be disqualified."

"Fine…" he lowers his guard. "But I'll be watching you and will fight back with full power if you guys try anything." He continues to glare at her.

"What reason do you have to be so hostile to us?" she asks, smiling at Ushido.

"What reason? Well you approach us before the exams with a friendly smile, and then attack us when the moment presented itself. As if you were planning on it." He still glares at her, fist clenched and legs spread apart, as though he was ready to attack or defend. He feels a hand on his shoulder and looks back to see Koken behind him.

"Forget it man… it's not worth causing a scene. We'll be against them in the final exams. We'll show 'em then." He smiles to reassure Ushido. Ushido accepts the reassurance and goes to sit down and wait for it all to end. The Grass ninja take out their scrolls and open them. Instead of the usual ninja to arrive in a puff of smoke, Temari is the one to emerge from the smoke.

"Well, well, looks like only three teams made it through. Damn… this'll make things difficult to figure out. Well, looks like I'll have to discus it with Lady Tsunade. Congratulations to you all for completing the second exam. Let's proceed to the next room where we'll be debriefed by Lady Hokage." She smiles as she signals them to follow her.

In the next room, Lady Tsunade stands in the centre of the room along with her aide, who seems to be holding a pig.

"Three groups huh? Not bad. Congratulations are in order to the nine of you. You made it through to the final exam. One month from now, you will be put against each other, one on one. You are no longer a team until the end of the exams. You will train alone but can aid each other in training if you do so need it. The training grounds will obviously be available to you all to use. You will be expected to be present at the arena by ten AM on the twentieth of August. I expect to see you all there. Good luck for the upcoming month of training. And enjoy your stay here in Konohagakure." She smiles as she signals them all to leave. Ushido, Kiba, Koken, Shino, Hinata and Jonetsu all stay together as they make their way out.

"So… that was the Hokage?" asked Ushido.

"Yep, she's been in charge of the village for nearly two years now. Since the Third Hokage died protecting the village against Orochimaru." Kiba smiles as he rubs his nose.

"Was she always so…" he gestures at Kiba, placing his hands in front of his chest. Jonetsu looks over at him and clenches her fists.

"You ass!" she punches him over the head, which sends him into the floor. The other guys jump back in horror as Hinata giggles at them both. Jonetsu looks over at Koken, as if to tell him to pick Ushido up. Koken lowers his head as he passes her and carefully picks Ushido up.

"Damn it May-Chan… you didn't have to hit so hard." Said Ushido as he slowly regains his consciousness.

"Hmph… well you shouldn't be so rude." She crosses her hands and turns her head away. The two are silent for a moment before they all burst out laughing. The slowly make their way out and head back towards the village. Tsunade and Shizune watch them as they walk out.

"This year should be interesting. I look forward to what's to come. Shizune, any word from HIM?"

"N… No milady, Jiraiya hasn't sent any word yet as to when they'll be returning."

"Shame, it'd be nice to have him back in time to see the final exam. Although… I'm sue his little protégé wouldn't be happy that he'd be the only one left out of everyone he knows that is still a Genin. Remind me to get ready for an earful when they get back." They both giggle as they make their way out.

Back in the village, they all stop by a restaurant for some barbeque. Inside they see Ino and Sakura, along with Shikamaru, Temari and a rather large young man they don't quite recognize.

"Hey guys, over here." Sakura shouts over and signals them to join. Ushido sits between Kiba and Hinata, relaxing instantly as he sits. The sweet smell of the grilling barbeque hit his nose; his mouth begins to water as he takes in the sweet scent. Jonetsu sits just opposite him and pouts a bit at the fact she can't sit next to Ushido.

"I see you all made new friends. Ushido, Koken and Jonetsu right?" said Sakura as she scans their faces and remember them from the other day. They all nod in response to her question.

"That's quite a memory. We met Kiba and the team and he and Ushido instantly began their rivalry." Koken smiles as Ushido and Kiba give the biggest smile possible. Sakura smiles back as she introduces the group to Ushido and his team.

"Well, in case you forgot. I'm Sakura Haruno, that there's Ino Yamanaka. I'm sure you'll remember your proctors, Shikamaru Nara and Temari. And the one stuffing his face with the barbeque is Choji Akimichi." She continues to smile as Ino looks over with a smile and waves, as does Temari. Shikamaru nods and leans back to relax. Choji takes a moment from the barbeque to look up and acknowledge them.

"Hi there." He smiles as the group smile in response. They smile back as the all order their food. They all begin to chat and become acquainted with each other. They find it very easy to relax with Ushido and quickly begin talking as though they'd been friends for years. It felt like hours had got by as they continue to chat. Ushido and Koken had their usual rivalry challenge of who could eat the most in the shortest amount of time. They were easily put to shame when Choji quickly joined in and devoured ten bowls within two minutes. They agreed it was a draw and added a point to both. Jonetsu chats away with the girls as Koken and Ushido join in with the guys. As they day comes close to an end, they pay for the food and head out. The day had gone by quickly and the streets are now lively as many people walk about to see the village in the night. All of the people who had failed the exams had decided to stay to see what would happen in the end. They all say their goodbyes and head off home. Koken, Jonetsu and Ushido all walk together through the crowds of the streets. They decide to look around before heading back. Jonetsu sees many interesting things and grabs Ushido without hesitation to drag him over. Koken can't help but laugh at them as he watches Ushido look back at him in confusion. Each time Ushido attempts to stretch out his arm for Koken to save him, Koken would simply lift his arm a little and wave, as though he was simply mocking him. Ushido would remember this for the next month to come. Time went by and they had seen pretty much the whole village. They decide to stop by a shop quickly to get a treat. Ushido only had enough for on ice-lolly, which he split with Jonetsu to stop her drooling over his shoulder. Koken bought himself a large bag of little sweets, since he didn't spend anything in the village. They casually made their way back to the inn and relaxed. Darui was reading a book he picked up in the village while he waited for them.

"So… how was the second exam? I was starting to get worried about you guys. That forest is pretty dangerous." He smiled as he peaks over the top of the book. Ushido doesn't seem very pleased by the smile. Koken decides to speak up since the other two were too tired to say much.

"It was easy, believe it or not. We were able to get through it by the second day. We teamed up with three ninjas from this village." He laughed as he looked over to Ushido from remembering how he and Kiba were on day one.

"That so, huh? Well at least you had fun." He smiled again. Ushido pulls himself up from the floor and makes his way into the next room.

"I'm going to bed… see you guys tomorrow." He said as he opens the door and lazily shifts himself through the doorway. He turns his back to his bed and falls back; his eyes shut as soon as he hits the ground. Jonetsu pokes her head through the door to check if he's ok and smiles at the sight of him already fast asleep.

"Wow… he must be really tired after all that excitement." She gives out a slight giggle as she carefully closes the door and heads back to her seat.

The next morning, Ushido awakens to the sound of bird songs and people chatting in the streets. He looks around the empty room and pushes himself up to his feet. In the next room, Darui is still reading his book from the night before.

"Darui Sensei? Where's Koken and May-Chan?" he looks at his master, puzzled by the silence in the house.

"They left early, went to train. They let you sleep since you seemed so worn out." He said, looking over the top of the book again. He then licks the tip of his finger and turns the page and looks back down to continue reading.

"Wait… what time is it? How long have I been asleep?" he suddenly jumps to his feet.

"It's already gone past 2. You must've been real tired to sleep that long…"

"Crap!" Ushido interrupts as he rushes to the door and sprints out to rush off to train. Darui sits silently for a moment as he turns the page again.

"See ya." He says quietly to himself as he continues to read.

Ushido rushes through the village as he looks around for his teammates. In the distance, he spots Kiba and the others walking together. He chuckles as he rushes towards them and calls out to them. They all turn back and wave to him as he closes in. he stops before Kiba and greets them with a rather large smile.

"Hey Ushido, where's Koken and Jonetsu?" asked Kiba.

"I don't know, somewhere in the village. Training I've been told." He laughed as he looks around.

"Then that's most likely the training grounds. C'mon, we'll all go together. We were going there anyway." He signals Ushido to follow as they all turn and make their way to the training grounds.

A few minutes and they arrive in the training grounds. Just as Kiba had suspected, Jonetsu and Koken were training together.

"Koken-Kun… didn't Lady Hokage say that it's better to train alone?" said Jonetsu as she cautiously blocks Kokens attacks.

"Yeah, but I need to train myself up. It's better than just hitting a tree or something like that." He replies.

"That is true… Ushido-Kun." Her face beams up as she spots Ushido approach.

"Hey guys, how's the training going?" he said as he smiles at them both.

"Good, I've really improved." Said Koken as he smiled at Ushido. "Wanna join us?"

"No thanks, guys. I'm gonna train alone. There's a particular thing I wanna learn. But I need to know if I have the right element affinity for it."

"Fine, your loss. C'mon Jonetsu-Chan, we'll continue over there." Koken signals for Jonetsu to join him as they continue to train together. Kiba and his groups find a place a train together. Ushido heads off to find a nice, quiet spot in the fields to train in solitude.

After searching for a while, he manages to find a nice quiet place. He sits down and crosses his legs to begin meditating. After a minute of meditating, he's interrupted by the sound of someone training nearby. Curious, he slowly makes his way to where the sounds are coming from. Through the bushes, he sees a masked man training by himself. Every now and then, the man would create boulders, then take a moment to charge up his chakra. He then concentrates the chakra into the palms of his hands and mixes, what sees to be, lightning chakra. Ushido listens in to the man.

"_Raikiri/ Lightning Blade!"_ Shouted the man as his hand meets the boulder and smashes it into small pieces. Ushido gasps at such a power and begins to think to himself for a short while.

"_Lightning style! He knows lightning style. Maybe I could learn from him. Nut he's a Leaf Ninja. Why would he share something like that with someone from the Hidden Cloud? Could I…?"_ He looks back at the masked and thinks over his choices.

"_Do I disobey Darui sensei and use the Sharingan? Or just try and learn Lightning style off someone else. I only have a month. Maybe I can do this before the month's over. Damn it… make a decision now damn it!" _His thoughts echo throughout his head. The thoughts haunt him as every second goes by. After a few moments go by, he snaps the thoughts away and looks back to the masked man.

"Just this once. _Sharingan."_ Instantly, his eyes change to the bright, crimson red. The two points begin to spin as he copies the hand signs the masked man makes.

"_Ushi, spread, U, spread, Saru, spread… hm, seems easy enough. Ok, time to find a place to train."_

"Train what?" he hears a voice from behind. He instantly shuts his eyes and allows the Sharingan to deactivate. He looks back up to find the masked man standing above him. His headband covers one eye.

"Hehe… guess I must've though out loud." He chuckles nervously as the masked man smiles down at him.

"Just a bit. You're a Hidden Cloud Ninja, aren't you?" he continues to smile down at Ushido.

"Yeah, I'm in the final round and I'm gonna try learn something new. I have fire jutsu but there's only so much I can learn in the Hidden Cloud. I need to learn Lightning style." He admits to him.

"Hm… well, I could help you I suppose. But only if your ready to learn a dangerous jutsu. And a lot of hard training."

"Ok… but why would you help me?"

Asked Ushido.

"Because… you remind me of someone. Someone I trained a while ago, during his first Chunin exams. I passed this skill to him and I'd like someone else to know it."

"Ok… I'm Ushido. Ushido… Shinjo. Pleased to meet you…"

"Kakashi, Kakashi Hatake." He smiled as they both shake hands.

The days fly by as Ushido and Kakashi meet up and train together. Ushidos skills with the lightning attack have grown over time and have become almost perfect. Without the help from his Sharingan, he's caught on rather well. Kakashi smiles at how well Ushido has progressed.

"You seem to have progressed well these past two weeks. It may be time to kick you up to level two." Said Kakashi.

"Really? You really think I'm ready for that?" said Ushido, his eyes widened at the thought.

"No… but that got you pumping, didn't it? Maybe I'll teach you level two when you're able to perform this off perfectly." Kakashi smiles as Ushido frowns at him. After a moment of silence, Ushido continues to train. Weaving the hand signs.

"Let's try a different name for you. It's also known as Chidori. A Thousand Birds. Have you noticed the sound? The constant tweeting of a thousand birds. It's an incredible attack." Said Kakashi. Ushido nods at this and weaves the hand signs.

"_Ushi, spread, U, spread, Saru, spread. Chidori/ A Thousand Birds!"_ He shouted as a great electrical aura of Chakra surrounds his hand. He strikes at the boulder before him, which explodes into hundreds of tiny pieces. He smiles as he looks back at Kakashi with wide eyes.

"*Sigh* Guess This means I have to show him level two." He chuckles as he approaches Ushido.

Meanwhile, Koken, Jonetsu, Kiba, Hinata and Shino all sit in the barbeque restaurant together for a break. They're silent for a while as they eat. Kiba finally breaks the silence.

"So… where's Ushido?" he mutters with his mouth full of meat. Koken looks over at Jonetsu and shakes his head.

"We never see him. He's there in the morning, then gone all day. We never see him. He's really taking this "training in solitude" thing seriously. I hope he's not putting too much strain on himself." Said Koken as he looks out the window. Kiba sits in front of him with crossed arm.

"Hmph… what the hell could he be doing that's so important and secretive. I swear, it's just like Sasuke back in the Chunin years two years ago." He slumps back in his seat. Koken looks back at him, curious as to whom he means.

"Sasuke? As in… Sasuke Uchiha? The rouge ninja that left the Hidden Leaf?"

"Yeah… you heard of that?" he asks as Koken nods. "Heh... yeah, Sasuke was the village heartthrob. All the girls wanted him and al the guys envied him… to an extent. Only the few of us didn't much envy him. During the one month break in the Chunin exams, he was off somewhere with Kakashi-Sensei. Never saw him until the final exam."

"Wait… Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan eye? Sasuke trained with him?" Koken interrupted.

"Well yeah… Kakashi was his team leader. He trained with him the whole month. Wait… do you think that's where Ushido could be?" Kiba clicked his fingers as he shoots forward.

"Why would a Hidden Leaf Jonin train a Genin from the Hidden Cloud?" asked a puzzled Koken.

"Well, why not? He has no reason to distrust him." Replied Kiba.

"True… but he also has no reason TO trust him."

"Well, that's me idea on where he is. You ever find out, let me know if I was wrong or not." Said Kiba as he slumps himself back into his seat and takes another piece of meat. They all laugh together as they continue to eat.

Later, that eerie night, one of the Grass ninja stalks the streets silently. He looks through all of the houses until he manages to find Ushido sound asleep. H chuckles to himself as he slips over to the front door. After taking a moment to pick the locks, and chuckles again as the doors open.

"Hehe… not very secure. Tayume will be happy with me for this. I get rid of him and we can beat the other two easily in the final exam." He said under his breath as he slips through the door. He hears a slight groan in the corner as he stops dead in his tracks. He looks over to the corner of the room and sees Darui asleep in his chair with a book covering his face. The snoring so loud it surprises him that the others are sound asleep.

"Well… this looks like it'll be easier." He chuckles as he proceeds through the door to the bedroom. He watches Ushido sleep soundly as he reaches into his tool pouch and take out a Kunai. He kneels down beside Ushido and brings the Kunai close to him.

"Sleep tight you little brat." He raises the Kunai above him then swings down. Suddenly, from behind him, someone grabs his hand and brings a Kunai to his throat.

"You really shouldn't break into someone's home. It's very rude and illegal." He says as he emerges from the darkness.

"You… you're that accursed sensei of theirs. I thought you were asleep." He said with a terrified voice.

"A clone. You fell for it just as I'd hoped." He chuckles

"How did you know to have a clone ready for me to see?"

"I've been doing it every night since we arrived." He explains. "I've created a jutsu to detect anyone who enters the house and silently alert me, a rather handy jutsu. I have to thank you and your team for introducing yourselves to us. If you hadn't I wouldn't have had a reason to feel suspicious and keep an eye on you guys. I mean… who goes up and introduces themselves to someone in the Chunin exams? That was your first mistake, here's your last. Goodbye." He pulls the knife across the Grass Ninja's neck as he disappears in a puff of smoke.

"Damn it, a clone." He mutters to himself as he rushes out the door. He looks around all of the buildings and spots a figure fleeing across the rooftops. He chases the figure as fast as he can until he gets close enough to identify him. He follows closely all the way to the forest nearby where he decides to turn and fight.

"I'm not gonna die here you bastard! I might not kill the boy but Tayume'll be happy with me for taking you out! Come one, _Wind Style: Tornado gust!"_ a blast of wind surrounds them, almost taking Darui off of his feet. Taking a moment to think it through, he takes to the winds and floats around with the winds as he draws a few shuriken. He aims as best he can through the currents and throws them. They are taken by the wind currents and head straight for the Grass Ninja. Without looking, he blocks the shuriken and sends them above him.

"Perfect." Darui smiles and he pulls back a small string he manages to attach secretly to the stars, which come back down and tie around the Grass ninja. Darui smiles as he brings his hand in front of his face with two fingers pointed out.

"_Lightning Style: Conduction wire."_ Instantly, a burst of lightning surrounds the wire and makes its way down to the Grass ninja. In a flash, the ninja is surrounded in a powerful burst of electricity. When it ends, he falls to the floor with small spark cracking across his body and smoke emitting from places.

"You see… you can't win this. Give up and accept your fate." Said Darui as he approaches the Ninja, who slowly pulls himself up and shakes himself back into consciousness.

"No! I still have a trick up my sleeve. I'll show you just how powerful I am and who you're messing with!" The ninja is then surrounded in a great gust of wind as he slowly lifts into the air. As he does, Darui sighs as he scratches his head. His left arm becomes surrounded in a black lightning.

"_Storm Release: Black Hunting!" _Two black panthers made of lightning stand beside Darui as he sends them into the air towards the Ninja. Unable to dodge, the panthers strike at him and send him further into the air. As he tries to regain his composure before the attack can land but is too late when he notices a great black, electrical panther head form above him. The panther opens it's mouth as it lunges forward to the ninja and swallows him. As the mouth closes, it explodes in a great dark flash of lightning, leaving the ninja too weak as he fall to the ground. Electricity cracks all around his body as he lays weak. Darui approaches him slowly as he coughs on the ground.

"You… you're no push over, Cloud ninja. To think that I was beaten so easily." He coughs again.

"Of course I won. A Jonin versus a Genin… get real." He scoffs the dying ninja.

"Hehe… Genin, huh? Seems our plans went well then. We're one of the strongest of our village. Orders from our leader to watch that little Uchiha brat of yours!"

"What…?" Darui steps back, socked by this.

"We will have him soon. First, we need to sow him how to be stronger, then our leader will want him. One day, he will be ours." He laughs then coughs through the laughing as he slowly becomes silent. Darui closes his eyes as he sighs. He searches the body shortly and finds a headband. The Hidden Sound.

"_What… Orochimaru! How does he know about Ushido? This isn't good. Should I inform the Hokage? What if that interrupts the exams? Maybe wait until the exam finish then act as though `I found his body shortly after. Such a drab…" _he thinks to himself as he further examines the body. Nothing… He sighs as he turns away and heads back to rest up.

The month has finally gone by and the final exam is about to go under way. Everyone arrives early and ready to fight. Only half an hour until the doors to the entrance of the arena closes and the exam begins. The participants stand together in silence as everyone else find his or her seats. Koken looks in the line of participants but can't seem to find Ushido.

"_Damn it, where the hell is he? He's gonna be late. If he doesn't arrive soon then he'll be disqualified. Why didn't he come back last night too? Did something happen to him? Damn it Ushido, haul ass."_ Koken thinks to himself as he carefully scans the area.

"It seems we're missing two people today. Did something happen to them?" asked Tsunade as she examines the participants.

"Our friend went out for a walk a few nights ago and didn't return… we fear something may have happened to him, Lady Hokage." Said Tayume as she steps forward and bows her head.

"Same with our friend, Lady Hokage. He went out yesterday to train and never came back. I think he may have stayed out with Kakashi-Senpai last night to train." Said Koken as he does the same as Tayume.

"Kakashi? Kakashi Hatake left for a mission two weeks ago. He couldn't possibly be with Ushido." Said Tsunade as she looks over to Koken. His face drops as he hears this. "No matter… it's almost ten o clock. We need to close the doors soon if he doesn't show up. Get ready!" she shouts as the ninja ready themselves to close the doors as the clocks near ten. In the distance, a great cloud of dust quickly approaches the arena. Within the cloud is what seems to be a figure of a young man. Upon closer inspection, the figure turns out to be Ushido. He rushes as fast as he can to the doors, which are now beginning to close. The arena light up as they roar for Ushido as he quickly approaches. Looking at the doors, he doesn't seem to be going quick enough to make it through. Maybe this is where it ends for him.

"USHIDO!" shouts a familiar voice. He looks up to see Sakura extending her arm out to him. He smiles as he rushes towards her and grabs her arm. She smiles as their eyes link for a moment and turn to throw him towards the closing doors. Ushido flies through the air as he approaches the doors at high speed. He only just fits through the doors and lands softly on his feet as he skids across the floor, leaving another cloud of dust. As the dust calms, it reveals Ushido standing in line with everyone else with a smile across his face.

"Ushido Shinjo, reporting for the final exams." He chuckles as the crowds cheer in an uproar to his arrival. Tsunade smiles as she sits down to leave the crowds to calm down.

"You're late, Ushido." Said Koken as he looks over to Ushido with a smile.

"Sorry… I was a little tired from training half the night." He smiles back.

"Heh, you had me worried there buddy… thought I wouldn't be able to fight you." Chuckled Kiba.

Tsunade stands up as she addresses the group.

"So, now that everyone available is here… let the final part of the Chunin exams begin!"

**So there's Chapter 3 done. It's starting to get a lot harder to get through these so bear with me.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hooray, Chapter 4. This will be a nice action packed chapter for you guys. Another shout out to Lambhuna for his help in this chapter. Appreciate the help mate. Enjoy you guys.**

Chapter 4: Finals.

Tsunade smiles as she examines everyone before her. Her eyes glanced over to the board above her as two names flash up in large letters. As everyone carefully examines the chosen combatants, Kiba confidently chuckles after careful examination.

"_Heh, when I win this first round, I can fight Ushido and beat him." _He looks down the line and smiles as Ushido looks across and spots him. Koken sighs as he looks over to Hinata and Jonetsu.

"_Damn it, this sucks. If I beat Shino, I'll have to fight Hinata or Jonetsu… this sucks. Either way I have to fight a chick…" _he sighs again as he lowers his head. Tayume gives a dark grin as she looks up at the board.

"_Well, looks like I'll be fighting the little Uchiha brat. This'll be my chance to examine his power."_ She continues to smile to herself as Ushido breaks eye contact with Kiba and looks over to her. Tsunade politely coughs for their attention and continues to address the audience and Genin alike.

"So now you all know who you'll be fighting this round. First up is Ushido Shinjo vs Tayume Uzuko. The rest of you will wait up in the observation box." she ordered, leaving no room for argument. Everyone bows before they make their way up to the enclosed stand, reserved only for those who were participating in the tournament.

"You ready for this? I've been training hard for this fight and I'm not gonna back down 'cause you're a girl..." He asked Tayume.

"Hah! Of course, you're not the only one who's wanted this fight and I don't expect anything less than your best but I doubt that'll be enough to stop me!" She slyly grinned as she crouches down into her style.

"The first round begins now!" shouted Tsunade. To the crowd's surprise, the two of them didn't take a step after the fight started as they began to anaylze their opponents.

"_Hmph! This brat doesn't look like anything special but that stance... it seems familiar and I don't know where I've seen it before. I've heard from the rumours that he has an impressive arsenal of jutsu but his chakra control is shoddy as hell. His face isn't letting any secrets about him, either. Maybe I should toy around a little bit and see if I can bring out his repitoire..." _she mused to herself.

"_She's good... she's taking the time to analyze me but I'm afraid that I've done this too often to let myself be known so easily. She'll probably try and draw out what jutsu I can use so I'll need to hold back on some of my 'flashier' moves. She's also got a short blade... I wonder..." _He brings his hands together and begins to weave hand signs.

"_Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu_**!"** he takes a deep breath and releases the controlled ball of flames from his mouth. Tayume hastily examines the blazing inferno before her and leaps away from the path of the flames before quickly taking out three kunai and throws them in response. Even without using his Sharingan, he whips out a hidden kunai and deflects the projectiles with ease. Sparks fly around him as the Uchiha notices the exploding tags tailing behind them, kicking up a dust storm around the boy as part of her distraction.

"_Crap! How did I not see the tags? Okay, Ushido... calm down and focus. Sense where she'll attack from..." _he thought. Closing his eyes to focus, he takes in the feel of the air around him and uses it as a sensor for movement. He did not have to wait long as he sensed a disturbance when Tayume leaps to strike him from his blind spot. Using the cloak to disguise the sudden skirmish between the two fighters, the audience fell for the suspense as flashes of spark appear irregularly inside the storm. After a few minutes, she jumps back out of the dust as she unsheathes her blade. Using another kunai as distraction, she immediately throws her blade forward and pierces Ushido's side. His eyes widen as the new sensation runs throughout his body while many people in the audience gasp. Still being surrounded in the dusty veil, he couldn't see as a tear slowly fell down Jonetsu's cheek as she watches from above. The arena remained silent as they stare in awe at what just happened and patiently awaits what happens next. Ushido slowly falls forward, stopping himself a few inches from the ground with his arms as he smiles...

*Poof*

The crowd gasps again, even louder, while Tayume looks around herself frantically.

"_N-No way! Shadow Clones? Crap! He had the chance when I was waiting to strike him outside the dust storm! I need to..."_

The smoke, from the earlier fireball, behind her begins to clear as the sound of a roaring 'whoosh' becomes noticeably louder. Tayume snaps her head and looks back to see another fireball headed in her direction. Unlike the first attempt, she could easily tell that this attack was much stronger and faster than the last attempt. She counters the fireball with another tagged kunai, canceling out the fiery blaze... but she didn't notice the cold metal that was placed on her neck.

"H-How did you…" she stammered.

"I managed to create a clone while everyone concentrated on the fireball. You took in the immediate threat and focused your attention on the fireball instead of focusing on your surroundings. I took the advantage and ran around your blind spot and... checkmate." he smirked.

"Impressive. You're sharper than a lot of kids your age, I'll give you that. You would've been even greater with my master, you know?" Tayume grinned in response. "I've got no choice. I concede!" she shouted, signaling Ushido to lower the kunai from her neck.

"Thanks for the offer but I prefer staying with the Cloud. Guess I beat you, though." he chuckled as she began to walk away, slightly swaying her hips in the process.

"Huh... keeping dreaming, boy! You've got a fair bit to go before you can handle this!" she shouted back, leaving the boy with a grin and a wink as she saunters off the battle area.

"_I'm gonna kill her. I'm gonna kill her..." _Jonetsu chanted inwardly, leaving Koken to snicker at the mantra of his female team mate. Meanwhile, the crowd cheers for Ushido as Tsunade makes her way towards the barrier of the Kage's box.

"Ushido Shinjo is the winner of this round!" shouted Tsunade as the crowd roars for Ushido while he continues to watch Tayume walk away. "The next match will be Kiba Inuzuka vs Tsyra Bakuya! Would the contestants please make their way to the arena!" she shouts as the crowds continue to roar out for him. Tsunade grins before walking away to her previous sitting place. As soon as Tsyra begins to make his way down, Tayume halts the boy by grabbing his wrist as she passes..

"_Don't forget what we're really here for, brat. We don't need to win. Make this fight short and easy."_ she growled, staring into his eyes with a cold glare. He knew this look she gave him: the look that would mean total annihilation if he didn't listen.

"_Oh crap! I don't want to have to face THAT again! *Gulp*_ You got it Tayume… no problem." He chuckles nervously, trying to hide the apparent fear in his voice. Smirking for a brief moment, she flings his wrist away and struts in the opposite direction. Little did they realize that a certain Hyuga was listening in to the conversation...

Meanwhile, Ushido still stands where he was, carefully examining his battle with Tayume._ "That was too easy; __no way someone like her would give up like that. Something's up, if she's as powerful as she claims then why would she allow herself to be blindsided that easily? She's up to something and I might've made a mistake in using my shadow clones..."_ He sighs while he walks back to join the others. He glances up to the stands where the fighters were waiting and noticed Jonetsu softly nodding at him, as if she was on the same wavelength as the Uchiha was. He acknowledges her while he walks towards the stairs, passing Kiba and Tsyra. Kiba and Ushido exchange a quick glance and smirk before the two broke contact.

"_Huh, seems my team wasn't the only one who caught on..." _Ushido pondered. Silence quickly followed after the next candidates face off against one another as the two make eye contact for a brief moment and smile.

"C'mon, Akamaru, time to kick ass! Ready boy?" Kiba chuckled as he folds his arms across his chest. Akamaru gives an affirmative bark, panting happily as his master strokes his side. "Alright, let's do this!" He continues to grin, making Tsyra feel on edge. He could tell that this would prove to be a tough match-up but he had no option fight back as to not draw suspicion to himself to why he would allow himself to be beaten so easily but he couldn't drag it out too long, lest he faced himself with a fate worse than death... or so he believed.

"Okay, you know it by now; I want a nice fight between you two. Ready…?" Tsunade calls, the two nodding as they watch each other, searching for an opening. "Alright then, begin!" she shouted. Tsyra quickly takes the moment to throw two shuriken towards Kiba, who leaps over them, smiling down at him. Utterly confused as to why he found his grin amusing, Tsyra chuckles as he raises his arms.

"_Wind Style: Great Boom!_**" **He shouts as a powerful burst of wind emits from his palms. Kiba again chuckles when he notices he can't dodge the attack. The attack connects with the young Inuzuka before a puff of smoke showed that Kiba switched with a nearby log, scorched from the previous fight.

"Let him remember the sacrifice which the log gave in the hope of maturing from his mistakes and grow as a shinobi. The log giveth and the log taketh away. Amen." Kiba chanted. Akamaru barked in response as a unanimous 'Amen' roared from the stands, leaving everyone confused, sweat dropping from the random act, Tsyra included. "Alright, let's do this!" Kiba continued, reinstating his hasty nature as he crouches down on all fours like a beast. "C'mon, _Man-Beast Transformation!_" He shouts as the two figures surrounded themselves with a veil of smoke. It was a minute before the fog began to clear, revealing the twin Kibas. They both show a feral smile as they begin sprinting towards Tsyra. With one final step, the two leapt forward and began to rotate at a blistering rate.

"_Fang Over Fang!_**" **Kiba shouts as the two mini tornadoes began travelling around the entire arena. Tsyra watches them carefully, planning to dodge them, if given the opportunity.

"_Damn… that looks dangerous. Tayume was able to come back from it, but I don't know if I can if even one hits me, let alone both of them. Maybe I could use Great Boom again and push them away when they get close enough. Yeah… that should work."_ He mused to himself as he readies for the oncoming attack. As the two split directions and head towards him, his eyes widen and readied his counter. The two decided to try and flank the Genin but the smile on his face nerved the Inuzuka a little bit as Tsyra extends both arms, in opposite directions, and waits for the two to get closer. The two tornadoes come closer and closer to Tsyra, enough for him to feel a breeze from each of them, chuckling as he finally concentrates his chakra and emits another powerful burst of wind. The force of the wind attack completely stops the two and throws them back into the walls with great force.

"Haha! Not bad, Tsyra... that's a damn powerful move you have there but one of my mates is far more powerful than you! You've got a ways to go before you catch up with the blonde mutt!" Kiba sniggered, leaving Tsyra with a tick mark as his eyebrow twitched ever so slightly.

"Hah! It doesn't matter, I've won this match! There's no way you can beat me!" Tsyra cockily remarked, smirking as he takes his original stance once more. His eyes widened when he noticed another veil of smoke, housing two more logs to take its place.

"Let those not forget about the young of my ilk, the branch. Like myself, they also willingly sacrifice themselves to protect those from harm. Let us take a moment to remember the brave branches that gave themselves..." Kiba spoke as he and Akamaru, along with a majority of the audience (Tsunade included), bowed their heads and took a minute to pay their respects.

"What the hell!? What's all this nonsense? We're supposed to be fighting!" Tsyra bellowed, only to be smacked in the back of the head by a piece of wood by Ushido.

"Hey! Do not disrespect the name of the log, for he is holy and just! I have been saved many times by the humbleness of the log and I will not stand for you to slander its name!" the Uchiha roared, loud enough for the rest of the audience to hear, winning an 'Amen' in response, once more.

"Hey!" A voice calls from behind Tsyra, forcing him to turn around, only to find another two tornadoes behind him that were too close to block or dodge. "Heh… _Fang Over Fang!_" Kiba shouts as the two make contact with Tsyra, sending the poor guy into the wall with a crunching impact.

"The winner of this match is Kiba Inuzuka!" Tsunade declared as the crowd cheers in an uproar. Kiba and Akamaru bowed before the two approached Tsyra's twitching body and lifts him up, placing him on Akamaru.

"C'mon, let's get you back..." Kiba sighed as the three of them makes their way up towards the stands.

"Huh, even in winning a fight he lends a hand." Jonetsu smiled softly.

"Y-Yes, Jonetsu-chan... i-it's because our friend, he's the same. H-He helps those, enemy or ally." she stuttered as she sported an increasingly intense blush across her pale complexity.

"Yeah, yeah, I've copied the brat! So?" Kiba interrupted as the duo approach Tayume, who takes Tsyra from Akamaru's back and gives a small smile to thanks Kiba for the help, before making his way back to the group.

"The next round will be Koken Nihin vs Shino Aburame!" Tsunade shouts to the crowd as Shino began to make his way down to the arena. Koken, on the other hand, decided to make a grand entrance and jump over the barrier as he began to run vertically down the wall, using his chakra to stick. Once he reaches a good thirty feet from the ground, he somersaulted backwards and landed on his feet, one hand supporting himself and one in the air behind him. Of course, this got a few whistles and laughs from the audience as Shino slowly walked over to meet him.

"Well, look at Mr Show-off, here! Okay, you two… Begin!" shouted Tsunade as Koken instantly leap back, watching Shino as a small black patch slowly run down his body and pools on the ground. The patch quickly approaches Koken, who leaps up and throws down a kunai covered in lightning chakra, dispersing the horde before they regroup together again to surround and cover the kunai. After a moment, the lightning is gone.

"_I see… so the bugs are special ones that feed on chakra. I should definitely avoid them. Would it work if…?" _Koken thought as he examines the area.

"You walked right into it." Shino bluntly said as Koken turns around to face off with a great cloud of black buzzing, drowning out all sound around him.

"_Do I really have to use THAT technique now? It uses quite a lot of my chakra; do I really have a choice?" _Koken smiles as he closes his eyes, thinking carefully through many scenarios in his head, all ending in him using his secret technique. "_Damn it, I can't use it now. I wanted to save it for later on… I need to keep trying. Maybe…" _Koken's eyes widen as he smiles and turns to face the great, black swarm of bugs. He begins moulding his chakra to prepare for his next attack. _"Time to use the other technique I've been working on. Ok, here we go." _He thinks to himself as he begins to weave hand seals.

"I, Tatsu, Ushi, Inu, Tori. _Lightning Style: Twin Surge!_**" **He shouts as his arms are surrounded by two, powerful, electrical charges. He throws his hands out to the swarm of insects, letting a large blast of lightning emit from his hands. The lightning begins spreading around the insects and surrounds them, electrocuting many within the blast. Koken takes the time to drop down to the ground and makes swift and steady eye contact with Shino, who was still keeping his steady stance with his hands in his pockets.

"_He hasn't even moved! This guy's a serious pain in the ass; I will beat him!" _he thought to himself as he carefully watches Shino, examining him for any opening. He examines the surrounding area to see if there's anything to use to his advantage.

"Hey, Shino, you wanna go at this for a while with just Taijutsu?" he smiles at Shino who pushes his sunglasses up his face.

"I... would like that." he bluntly replied, showing no emotion on his face. Unfortunately, he didn't expect the Cloud shinobi to be able to move at such a speed in response. _"He is fast. I'm curious as to how he got that close so quickly..." _Thought Shino as he brings his arms up to defend himself from Koken. The two began to attack each other in a flurry of punches, striking and deflecting as quickly as they can. A few minutes they attacked without pause until they both leap back and breathe heavily, panting hard and almost dropping to their knees.

"Wow, for a guy who seems like he prefers to keep his distance, you're good at close combat." Chuckled Koken as he raises his head to meet Shino's eye contact.

"There was a time I thought to train myself to fight hand to hand. However, it is not my main offensive manoeuvre," he replied, "And it seems you have not paid attention." the Aburame heir rose to his feet, as Koken turns to find a large swarm of insects behind him, raising his arms to send another swarm towards Koken, who is silent for a moment before he was swallowed in the great swarm.

"_Guess it's time then…"_ Koken thought as he silently weaves hand signs and concentrates his chakra. _"Time to use it…"_ He surrounds himself with his chakra and begins to tap into his Lightning affinity. After concentrating carefully on his control his chakra burst into and electric shield around him. Koken smiles as he looks around and sees the bugs slowly dying around himself.

"Heh… it worked! It actually worked!" He laughs as the swarm of bugs die around him and create a large pile in front of him. Shino stops as Koken rises to his feet surrounded in a great cloak of lightning. The crowd gasps at the sight; a few murmurs here and there.

"…!" Shino slightly twitched at the sight of his bugs.

"Sorry man, I guess I didn't think this power was that powerful. Sorry about the bugs." Koken apologized, scratching his head in the process.

"... it is fine." Shino replied, showing a small smirk as Koken appears before him again. "However, I concede." Shino continued, raising his arm to signal the end of the fight. Koken stared with wide eyes at the bug user as Shino shakes his head. "I cannot go on with a large portion of my bugs killed."

"Sorry again, Shino..." Koken nervously chuckled, leaving Tsunade watching the two, impressed by their camaraderie and sportsmanship. She chuckles as she stands to her feet and addresses the crowd.

"The winner of this round is Koken Nihin! Congratulations Koken." She smiles as Koken looks up and returns the smile to her. The two fighters began to walk away and join the others in the stands above.

"You never did things by half-measures, do you?" Ushido smirked as he and Kiba approach them with grins on their faces. Kiba takes Shino and walks over to Hinata, who instantly jumps over and hugs them, much to Shino's discontent. Koken and Ushido watch the team laugh together as they look back at each other. Ushido extends his arm to reveal his fist. Koken looks down and smiles as he extends his arm and fist bumps Ushido as they both walk over to Jonetsu.

"You know me! Go big or go home and whatever..." Koken smirked as they joined up with Jonetsu.

"The next round will be Jonetsu Mai vs Hinata Hyuga!" she shouts as Hinata looks up to the board before sighing softly and shifted her gaze over to meet Jonetsu.

"L-Looks like we're next, Jonetsu-chan." Hinata smiled softly towards Jonetsu yet twiddling her fingers.

"Yeah, I look forward to it." She smiled in response to the shy Hyuga. Tsunade calls once more out for them before they nod to each other and make their way down.

Once the two kunoichi presented themselves to the audience, they locked eyes for a few moments before Tsunade calls down to them.

"Good luck to you both... Begin!" she shouts as Hinata immediately activates her Byakugan. She takes her usual 'Gentle Fist' stance and jumps forward, attacking Jonetsu with a great flurry of her attacks in an attempt to strike one of her chakra coils. Much to everyone's surprise, Jonetsu kept a calm stance and blocked every attack thrown at her, or dodged, taking her time to examine Hinata and how she could land an attack. She waited until Hinata overshot one of her attacks, leaving the Hyuga defenceless and open for Jonetsu to attack, sending Hinata in the air.

"_Storm Release: Laser Circus!_**"**Jonetsu shouts out as a group of lasers emit from her outstretched arms and homed in towards Hinata. Hinata flew through the air, silent for a few moments, before she senses the attack coming closer and closer to her. She turns to find the lasers heading towards her as she begins devising a plan for a counter attack. Nodding in affirmation to herself, she begins to spin with such grace and deflected every laser near her. The crowd awed at her defensive manoeuvre as she land gently on her feet before leaping towards Jonetsu, attacking with great force. With each strike, Jonetsu found herself being pushed back one small step at a time before Hinata spins on the spot and readies one final attack, focusing her chakra. The Cloud kunoichi could do nothing but marvel at the Hyuga heiress as the navy blue chakra surrounds her hands and takes the form of two great, blue lions.

"_Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fist!_**" **Hinata shouted as she strikes Jonetsu in the stomach and sends her back across the floor. When she comes to a stop, Jonetsu tries desperately to push herself up but can't seem to find the strength to do so.

"Damn it! All that training for nothing." She berated herself, angry at how pathetic she was in the fight.

"N-No, you did great." she heard from Hinata, standing above her. She looks up to find her standing above her with a smile on her face. "You did very well to dodge all those attack and then attack a blind spot. Not many can do that to a Hyuga. I'm happy you did so well." her smile beams towards her as a single tear falls down Jonetsu's cheek. She picks Jonetsu up and carries her towards the others. Tsunade stands up and chuckles to herself.

"The winner is Hinata Hyuga!" she announces as the two approach their teams.

Ushido approaches Hinata and takes Jonetsu, who falls into his arm, too tired to walk by her own strength. She blushes as Ushido hold her steady in his arms for a moment before he whispers in her ears.

"You did great May-Chan. You can rest now." He smiles gently to her as her face almost goes completely red. She smiles back and closes her eyes to take in the moment with him. Ushido sits her down to rest and approaches a sniggering Koken.

"What are you laughing at, Koken?" he asked with a confused look on his face.

"Nothing, nothing." He dismisses it, waving his hand to Ushido. "Just something funny I remember from back home. I'll tell you later." He looks up to the board and is silent for a moment before looking back. "Looks like you're next, put on a good fight for us." He smiles as Ushido chuckles.

"Yeah… you bet." He said as they lock fists again. Tsunade calls over for the next combatants.

"Alright, next is Ushido Shinjo vs Kiba Inuzuka!" she shouts as the two in question look over at each other and exchange a competitive smile. They make their way down and stand ready opposite each other, still smiling as they watch each other carefully, waiting for Tsunade to begin the fight.

**So there's Chapter 4 for you guys, hope you enjoyed. Also, would appreciate it if you could review. It'd be nice to hear (or read) what you guys think. Btw, if you haven't read The Good Wife by ReiraKurenai, I highly suggest it. It's a great story and really gives a good feel and giggle.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Ok… here you go, Chapter 5, and so early too. Enjoy guys.**

Chapter 5: Conclusion.

The young Uchiha watches Kiba carefully, scanning every inch of him to find any weakness. If only he could use the Sharingan, maybe then it'd be so much easier, alas he cannot.

Kiba chuckles softly as he takes the time to watch Ushido an examine him too. His stance, his look, he makes it seem as though he's wide open it'd be a foolish thing to underestimate the young ninja from the Cloud. Time goes by slowly as the tension build up throughout the arena while Tsunade takes her time to examine them both for herself.

"_Impressive, they're using this time to evaluate each other and look for any openings so that they're ready to attack when the match begins. I have high hopes for this match." _She smiles as she quickly shakes the thoughts from her head after noticing the entire crowd is on the edge of their seats already. Maybe it's time to begin the match.

"Alright you two," she breaks the tension as the crowd sigh, "good luck. Begin!" She shouted as the two immediately leap towards each other. Ushido notices that Akamaru stays behind and prepares himself for whatever trap they may have planned while also concentrating on attacking Kiba. They meet with a furious flurry of punches and kicks, blocking and dodging each other's attacks as they counter with their own powerful strikes, and stay like this for a few minutes. Kiba stops and chuckles as he quickly ducks under Ushido's last attack slowing down time as Akamaru leaps towards him from behind Kiba and readies to attack. Ushido smiles as he reaches into his pouch and grabs a smoke bomb, throwing it to the ground and surrounding them in a great cloud of smoke.

Kiba and Akamaru jump back to back, looking around frantically for him or any trace of his scent. Finally his scent is revealed to them, approaching at high speed from above. Kiba chuckles as he looks up and attacks with a Kunai, cutting through Ushido to wound him and end the fight there and then. After taking the hit, a small puff of smoke surrounds him and reveals a burnt log, the exact same log that Kiba had used in his battle with Tsyra. Kiba jumps as he and Akamaru look around frantically again. After a while, Kiba noticed something, why hadn't the some vanished yet? It was a simple smoke bomb, so how has the smoke lasted this long, and made such a large cloud? Finally a voice appears behind him.

"The log giveth and the log taketh…" said the voice in a mocking chant as Kiba quickly turns and attacks, finding nothing but the emptiness within the cloud. "Let him remember the sacrifice which the log gave in the hope of maturing from his mistakes and grow as a shinobi." The voice came again as Kiba backs away slowly. Where was it coming from? And how wasn't he able to pick up on the scent? Kiba looks down at Akamaru, who whines softly. He pats Akamaru on the head, giving him the signal to use their famous Fang over Fang. Maybe that will help clear up the smoke and reveal where Ushido was. Maybe then they could finish this match and move on to the next round.

They both crouch down and begin to jog lightly, then into a sprint before spinning ferociously into their two mini tornadoes. Spinning faster than normal, they begin to circle the cloud of smoke. The cloud slowly sinks into itself before dispersing and clearing, revealing the entire arena for the crowd. As they slow down, Kiba gasps as he finally manages to pick up Ushido's scent from beneath the burnt tree about twenty meters away. Kiba chuckles to himself as he gently rubs his nose.

What do you say we finish this, pal? I'm ready to sit down for a few before I fight in the final round." He said as Ushido grins sheepishly at him.

Yeah, I guess. How about a display in power? Your Fang Over Fang Technique versus my little technique I've been working on?" he chuckles as Kiba takes a moment to ponder his offer. After a minute of thinking, he looks up and nods at Ushido, crouching down and reading himself. He looks over to Akamaru, who has crouched down beside him and shakes his head, telling him that he'll take this himself. The dog barks to agree and backs away, giving him the room he needs. After taking a deep breath, Kiba begins to sprint as fast as he can before beginning to spin and creates his mini tornado.

"Let's go, Ushido! _Fang Over Fang!_" He shouts as he quickly approaches the young Uchiha. Ushido sighs as he begins to weave hand seals before placing his left hand over his right arm. Lightning begins to crack across the surface of his skin as a burst of electric chakra emits in his hand. He smiles as he leaps forward to meet Kiba with his attack.

Their attacks collide with a loud bang as the crowd watches them push against each other. After a few moments, smoke rises from between them before a great explosion emits from them, pushing them back into the walls of the arena. They hit the walls with a deafening crash, looking weak and worn out. The crowd is silent as they watch the two carefully, waiting for someone to make a move. Kiba groans as he pushes himself from the wall and falls to his knees, all attention turning to him. Before he can say anything, he drops, face first, to the ground. Ushido opens his eyes and groans loudly as the crowd now turn to him and see what's happening he throws himself out from the indentation he made in the wall and lands gently on his feet. The young Uchiha looks up to the crowd and chuckles as they begin to cheer for him before Tsunade interrupts.

"The winner, Ushido Shinjo!" she shouts as the crowd continues to cheer and chant his name as Ushido approaches Kiba and picks him up and places him back on Akamaru's back. Akamaru whines quietly, yet in content with his master performance, and then barks happily to Ushido, who pats him on the head as they head back up to the stands to the others.

Up in the stands, everyone waits anxiously for Kiba, Akamaru and Ushido to come up to them. They all laugh together and congratulate them both on their performance before Koken shifts his gaze over to Hinata.

Hinata notices Koken watching her and looks over, seeing the readiness in his eyes. They watch each other for a minute before Tsunade interrupts them to address everyone.

"The next match is Hinata Hyuga vs Koken Nihin! Would you both make your way down." She shouts as the two nod to each other and make their way down. They watch each other carefully, Koken twitches his hand to ready himself for anything. The crowd watches anxiously as the two simply watch each other. No words, no sound. Tsunade decides to break the silence to announce the beginning of the fight.

"Alright, good luck to you both. Begin!" she shouts again as the two still make no move. Koken looks to his feet and closes his eyes, so many thoughts rush through his head.

"_Damn it… why did I have to fight a girl? It was so fun until now. Why couldn't Ushido fight her? Damn it, in Shikamaru's words 'this is a drag…'" _He chuckles as he looks back up at Hinata, who has already activated her Byakugan but hasn't made a move due to him being still. "Nice to know you're nice enough to wait for me to be ready… good to know I'm going against someone with some manners." He smiles as he makes eye contact with her. "Alright… let's start this."

He readies himself in his defensive stance and takes a small step forward. The two rush forward and begin attacking each other. Incredible, another person who can keep up with her speed. She thinks to herself that maybe she should introduce him to her cousin for a spar but shakes the thought from her mind when she realises that Koken has broken through the strikes they had been throwing at each other and struck her on the chest. The attack throws her back but wasn't enough to throw her off completely. She looks up at him and smiles kindly at him, which shocks him that she'd do such a thing in the middle of a fight.

"_What the hell…? Why would she smile like that when we're fighting? She's an oddball. Damn it Koken, get your head back in the game. I gotta concentrate my chakra, but she'd see it through the Byakugan. Maybe the Twin Surge… she couldn't possibly dodge that since it's a spread attack. Anyone caught inside will get electrocuted. Better try." _He thinks as he looks over to Hinata who was concentrating her own chakra around her hands and moulding it into the lions from before. He quickly begins to weave the hand seals before she can finish.

"_Lightning Style: Twin Surge!"_ his arms become surrounded by a great electrical aura. As Hinata rushes towards him to attack, he throws his arms forward and unleashes the powerful surge of lightning, surrounding Hinata and sending a powerful surge of electricity through her body. She stops inches away from Koken and falls to her knees, breathing heavily as she tries desperately to raise her head. Feeling too fatigued, she manages to mutter a few words.

"_I'm too tired…"_ She whispers.

"Hmm…? You ok Hinata?" he asked as he kneels down beside her.

"I'm too tired… if I carry on, I'll only make it worse for myself." She cries as Koken smiles and extends his hand to help her up. Hinata jumps at the sight of his hand and accepts it, blushing slightly as he pulls her up. Tsunade chuckles again as she gets up to her feet.

"Hinata Hyuga is unable to continue. The winner of this fight is Koken Nihin!" She announces as they make their way back up. Koken hold on to Hinata tightly as she leans on his shoulder, too weak to walk alone. He places her down beside Kiba, who had awoken half way through the fight. Ushido walks over to him and nods, giving him a look he knew all too well. Koken returns the look as the two stare in silence for a few minutes, Ushido chuckles as he turns his attention to the board.

"Looks like we're the last fight, sucks I can't use my_ hidden _power. But I'm sure I'll be fine. I still have a trick up my sleeve." He smiles at Koken.

"You sure? It seems that Chidori must've taken the whole month to learn. And even for a beginner, it seems like the type of attack that'd take a lot of chakra to use."

"Coming from the guy who managed to finally pull of Lord Raikage's technique of the lightning cloak and we all know how much chakra that takes up."

"True… so it looks like we're practically on our last legs."

"Yeah… seems like we're gonna have to get this over with as quickly as possible. Don't hold back but don't push yourself." Said Ushido with a worried look on his face.

"Look who's talking." Laughed Koken.

They continue to talk for a few minutes until Tsunade calls them down. They look at each other and nod, time to finally go and get this over with.

Everyone is silent as they watch them watch each other carefully, waiting for the good to go from Tsunade. Finally she stands up and addresses them.

"Alright you two… this is the final stage and the final match of the day. Make this the fight of your lives. Good luck to you both. Begin!" She shouts as the two disappear in a flash. The crowd gasps as they look around to find where the two had gone.

"Look!" am man from the crowd shouts as he points up, making everyone in the arena look up and gasp again in awe at the battle overhead. Ushido and Koken strike at each other nonstop with all they have. Grabbing the kunai they have and striking at each other, a loud clash of the kunai contacting with every hit. When they eventually ware out the kunai, they decide to battle by throwing shuriken at each other. The moment they run out of shuriken, Ushido leaps back and builds up his chakra, weaving all too familiar hand seals as he does so.

"_Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" _He shouts as he takes a deep breath and releases the great blazing ball of inferno. Koken chuckles as he manoeuvres around it and strikes Ushido across the back. Ushido disappears again, revealing another Shadow Clone trick, and attacks from the smoke from the fireball. Ushido extends his arm to attack with a kunai but is blocked by Koken with his own kunai.

"Really Ushido…? You try to distract me with that old trick?" He chuckled.

"Heh… it helped me know that you really have only the one kunai." He chuckled back.

"Same with you too, Ushido. What do you say we finish this? Chidori to Lariat?"

Ushido froze in place for a moment, remembering what Kakashi had taught him.

"_Impressive, you've managed to do better than Sasuke ever did. He picked up on this attack quite well but you've managed to do better. But I feel like I must warn you the same way I warned him. This attack uses a lot of chakra when you're a beginner. At the most, you can only use this attack twice per day. Maybe not even that. You need to be careful." Said Kakashi as he watched Ushido slump down and pant heavily, obviously fatigued by the whole training. "And definitely… never use it then use the level two…" he gets a more serious look on his face._

"_Why's that? What could happen?" said Ushido, now more curious to his warning._

"_Worst case scenario… you could exceed all your chakra and die." He sighs as Ushido is taken back from this warning. "Promise me you won't push yourself and only use the level two if you can." He said, Ushido looking down at his feet. "Ushido…" he demands._

"_Ok, I promise you Kakashi-Senpai. I promise I won't push myself." He smiles as Kakashi sighs in relief and sits next to him._

Ushido looks blankly at Koken as he waves his hand in front his face to see if he was ok. Ushido finally snaps out of it and looks back up to Koken. He sighs heavily and nods at him.

"Alright Koken… let's do this." He smiles. _"What the hell am I doing? Kakashi-Senpai told me not to overdo myself. He is gonna kick my ass if he finds out. Hell, he might try and bring me back from the dead just to do that of his 'worst case scenario' comes into play. Shit, too late now to go back on it. Might as well go with it."_ He sighs again as he concentrates his chakra into his hand. After a minute of concentrating, he looks up at Koken and nods. Koken raises his hand and unleashes a burst of electricity throughout his arm. Ushido looks down and begins to weave hand signs… but without noticing, he weaves different hand signs from the Chidori he had already used once that day.

"Mi, Tatsu, Uma, Hitsuji, Tori, Inu, Ushi, U, Saru." He finishes as electricity bursts in his hand, but seemed to look larger than it had with his battle against Kiba. Ushido sighs as his vision becomes blurred. _"Come on, Ushido… you can do this."_ He thinks as he forces himself to rush forward. Koken chuckles as he rushes towards Ushido, his arm raised high. When the two become a few inches away, time slows down completely for them as they bring their attacks together and impact with great strength.

"_Lightning Lariat!" _Shouted Koken.

"_Chidori," _Muttered Ushido as the lightning aura in his hand began to expand, _"level two."_ He finished as the lightning continues to increase, cracking off of his skin and making the hairs on his arm stand up. Koken feels the pressure build as his arm is thrown back from the sudden burst. Ushido crouches down and kicks up, striking Koken in the chest and sending him back. Koken soars through the air as he thinks to himself.

"_So… this is how you chose to end the fight. Was that the hidden technique you were taking about, Ushido? I guess you really are as strong as we all thought. Heh, she'll be lucky to have you." _He thought as he slowly reaches the ground. The moment Koken hits the ground he coughs hard as he struggles to get back up. Tsunade shoots up to her feet and announces the winner.

"The winner is Ushido Shinjo! Congratulations Ushido, you fought amazingly. I'm sure everyone here agrees with me when I say that it is a pleasure to announce you the winner." The crowd cheers louder than ever as Ushido looks around in awe at his achievement. He looks up to see Jonetsu watching happily as a small tear falls down her cheek. Ushido smiles up at her before turning back to help up Koken. As he extends his arm to grab Koken, he feels a wave of fatigue crash down on him. Before he can grab Koken's hand, he falls forward and crashes to the ground, instantly falling asleep once he hits the floor. The crowd gasps as a few medical ninja jump down to check if he and Koken are ok.

**So there's Chapter 5… wow, already right? This was originally meant to be with Chapter 4 but it does seem better now that it's shorter. I may come back to update this and try to extend the last two fights, but until then, this'll do. Don't forget to review and maybe PM if you have any questions. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Here you go guys. Hope you enjoy.**

Chapter 6: Home Again.

_Ushido awakens in a great field of green, nothing to be seen in sight for miles around. He carefully scans the area for anything suspicious but… nothing. All he can find is the emptiness before him. No people, no building, not even a scent in the air. Could this be limbo? Is he trapped in the afterlife alone for the rest of eternity? The very though scares him. What if this truly was it for him, maybe he overdid it and did die from exhaustion in his fight with Koken. Does this mean he can never see them again? Never fight and laugh with his best friend, or even see Jonetsu smile. He decides to walk around, maybe see if he could find anything around. Maybe he could find some way to escape this empty nightmare and return to his friends. He sets off to search for his way back. _

_It had felt like hours had gone by as he walked through the long green field. There was nothing around; nothing but green, green and more green. It was starting to get to him, he needed to escape and fast._

_After what seemed like his twentieth hour of walking, he finally came across a strange, yet familiar, ruin. A small entrance to a dark cave, covered in vines and weeds. How old was this place, and how long has it been like this? He takes a deep breath before slowly taking his first step inside, just peeking his head in to look around. Once he confirms the place is clear, he takes another deep breath and enters the small cave explores. _

_As he comes deeper into the cave he feels a strange presence near him, almost as though someone was there watching him. A strange sound emits from deeper in, becoming clearer the further in he goes. Then finally he hears it, a whisper in the darkness. "When your eyes have truly opened." The words repeat over and over, almost enough to drive him to insanity. Ushido swallows whatever fear he has and pushes on, hoping that he can find whatever is making him feel uneasy. The whispers become louder and louder, almost screaming in his ears until finally… they stop. Nothing now but total silence. Ushido, now metaphorically on the edge of his seat, stops dead in his tracks, waiting for something to come out of the dark and drag him to his doom. He hears some movement close by in the darkness, swift and steady, drawing closer to him. Ushido leans in closer, hoping to see whatever it is clearer. As he draws closer to the sound, it suddenly stops a few inches before him. And from the shadows before him, two crimson eyes open stare deeply at him, almost as though they were piercing his very soul. Ushido feels his heart ready to leap out of his chest, beating, what feels like, twenty times a second. These eyes… these dark, crimson eyes that are piercing his soul and possibly the last thing he'll see, seems very familiar. The Sharingan…? After moments of silence, a familiar voice calls out to him._

"_Why are you here? You aren't ready. Have your eyes truly opened? Have they seen true despair? Somehow, I doubt they have. You do not belong here yet, so leave." He said as they shape within the Sharingan shifted into what seemed like a three point shuriken. He knew these eyes. The same eyes that he saw the night his entire clan was wiped out. Itachi…? How could this be? Ushido falls to his knees, unable to move. Itachi sighs as he steps out of the darkness and places his hand on Ushido's head. "You cannot stay here; you have your friends waiting for you back home. Wake up young Uchiha… wake up." His voice fades as the entire place begins to fade with it around Ushido until finally, a constant beep is heard every second or so._

Ushido awakens in a small room in quite an uncomfortable bed. He looks around, only to find it's a hospital room. Why was he here? Did he really go that far in his fight with Koken? As his hearing slowly returns to him, he hears someone breathing ever so softly beside him, as if they were asleep. He looks down at his side to find Jonetsu sleeping soundly, her head resting beside his right arm. He chuckles at the sight and reaches down to brush her hair from her face. She awakens from the feel of someone stroking her hair, only to find that Ushido is the culprit. Making her blush slightly as her face slowly turn red from the sight of him as her heart begins racing in her chest.

"Hmm… are you okay May-Chan? You look really flustered." He said with a confused look on his face as he places his hand on her head, turning her redder that before. "And you're really warm too. Seems you should be the one on this bed and me beside you sleeping." He chuckles.

"U… Ushido-Kun." She whispers softly as her lips quiver and a small tear falls down her cheek.

"Hmm… What's up May-Chan?" he asked, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side. Jonetsu shakes her head and jumps p, flinging her arms around him and squeezing him tightly. "Whoa, whoa May-Chan, what's wrong?" he places his left arm around her, trying to pull her back to give himself a chance to breathe. She finally pushes herself off of him and shakes her head again.

"No… Nothing I'm just… glad you're okay. We were all worried about you so much. You beat Koken but collapsed in front of everyone. Tsunade-Sama said it was a miracle that you were alive from how low your chakra was. You must've exhausted yourself in that fight." She smiles as she hugs him again, only softer this time.

"So I won, huh? Wow, that's awesome. And I did it without the Sharingan too." He smiles as he looks down to Jonetsu, happily snuggled into his chest. His thoughts are interrupted by the door opening slowly and Koken walking in. He smiles at the sight of them and quickly tries to hide it when Jonetsu looks up at him and blushes before releasing Ushido and sitting up straight. Koken chuckles before waving his hand out the door. After a moment, Kiba, Hinata and Shino enter the room, smiling at the awoken Uchiha. Ushido returns the smile as they all gather around chat for a while. While everyone talk about the fights that happened in the exam, Ushido lowers his head as he begins to think about his strange dream.

"_What the hell was that? What was that place and why was Itachi Uchiha there? What did he mean by 'not ready' too? Maybe I should mention it to Darui-Sensei later. Or ask the Raikage then we get back."_ His thoughts are interrupted by a curious Kiba poking his head.

"You okay there buddy? You look a little glum." He chuckles as he continues to poke. Ushido gives him an annoyed look before pushing his hand away and shakes his head.

"I'm fine, Kiba. I'm just… tired."

"Well that's no surprise, you really drained yourself."

"How long was I out?" he asked, looking up at the group.

"Two days," said Koken as he stepped forward, "You've been out for about two days. We were beginning to worry. But the beeping of the heart monitors were enough to let us know you were ok." He smiles as Ushido smiles back. They all continue to talk, with Ushido finally joining in, for a while until Darui enters the room. He approaches Ushido and smiles at the sight of him being awake.

"Well, finally awake are you?" he chuckles as Ushido nods. "Good, the doctor said that you can rest an extra day after you wake up and then you should be good to go."

"A day…!" Kiba interrupts. "How the hell's that enough time for him to rest after using so much of his chakra?!" he shouts as Jonetsu punches him on the head and shushes him for shouting in a hospital.

"Well, the doctors have been keeping an eye on his recovery and found that a lot of his chakra had returned quickly. It's incredible to see since there was only one other person who's healing was a little quicker." He said, looking in amazement at Ushido. "Although, they said you can leave if you're feeling fine now. It's odd since they encourage you to rest up but they assure me that you seem stable enough to leave as soon as."

Ushido looks over to Jonetsu and smiles, deciding in that instant that he's ready to leave. She knows what he's like, the moment he wants to go, there's no stopping him from going. He jumps to his feet, much to everyone's amazement, and begins stretching. Jonetsu and Hinata jump back at the sight of him, turning red as he stretches in front of him. Jonetsu tries so hard not to squeal at him as the guys giggle to each other as Ushido looks around confused.

"Is there a draft, Ushido?" Chuckled Koken. "'Cuz your cheeks are a little blue." He says, trying so hard to stop himself from laughing loudly. Ushido tilts his head again before realising what he meant. His face turns totally red as he looks back and finds his rear end completely on show. He then notices the two girls red faces as they try so hard to look away in embarrassment. Ushido leaps for cover and searches for his clothes as Darui presents them to him.

"Looking for these, Ushido? I picked them up for you and was just about to say that maybe you should put them on before doing anything. I should've said earlier, apologies…" he scratches the back of his head as Ushido gives an annoyed look, his eyes twitching every so often. "Well, I think we should give him some privacy to get changed, don't you think guys?" the guys nod as they try to drag a horrified Hyuga and Jonetsu out of the room. Ushido sighs as he stands up and grabs his clothes. First putting his boxers on to avoid any more unpleasantries, the removes the gown before picking up his trousers and putting them on.

Outside, Koken sits next to Jonetsu away from the group, anxious to question her little "moment" with her dear Ushido. He looks over at her and smiles as a blush forms on her cheeks as she can guess what he's thinking.

"So… have fun in there?" he chuckles as he leans in closer to her. Her blush deepens as she tries to lean away from him.

"W… What do you mean Koken-Kun?" she asked in a nervous tone, desperately trying to avoid eye contact.

"You know what I mean… you cuddling into Ushido like a plush toy. It was so sweet." He chuckles again, making her shake her head annoyed.

"Well I'm sorry that I feel that way about him. You should know how worried I was for him. Why did you even let him push himself that far? It was too much for him to handle."

"Hey… we agreed not to go too far. That's why I used Lariat instead of the lightning cloak. So that I didn't drain myself but… that version of his Chidori… 'Level Two' he said as the pressure and power increased. I could feel so much of his chakra being put into it. It was… scary." He said as he looked down at his feet. Jonetsu sighs as she rests her elbows on her legs and places her hands beneath her chin to support her head. After a moment of silence, Koken looks up and smiles. "So… get a good look?" he said as a devilish smile crept across his face.

"Wh… what?" she jumped back as she sees the look on Koken's face. "What do you mean, Koken?"

"Oh come on… I saw you eyeing him up as he stretched. That's why I'm asking. Get a good look?" he said as he leans closer again. Jonetsu closer her arms as she turns her back on him.

"That's it, I'm done with this conversation; I don't even want to think about Ushido's…" a blush forms on her cheeks again as she remembers the sight she had from Ushido not realising his exposure. She looks back as she can feel Koken giving her a devilish look as he creeps his head over her shoulder. She clenches her fist before raising it and punching him in the face with great force. Kiba extends his arm out and catches Koken as he flies past from Jonetsu's punch.

"Ok… what did you do now, Koken?" he said as he let go of him and sat back down.

"Nothing, I swear… just friendly banter, honest." He chuckled as Kiba rolls his eyes and looks back over to Shino to continue their conversation. Koken shrugs as the door behind him opens and Ushido comes out to join them.

"Koken… did you say something to piss off May-Chan again?" he asked as he crosses his arms. Koken gives a cheeky grin as he shrugs his shoulders and raises his arms a little.

"Kinda, yeah." He chuckles as Ushido shakes his head and rolls his eyes. Everyone stands up and make their way out of the hospital. As they make their way out, they make plans to quickly go out for food at the barbeque restaurant one last time before Ushido and the team head home.

Outside, they find Ino and Sakura walking together and wave to them before approaching.

"Hey guys… how's it going?" said Sakura with a warm smile.

"Good, we were thinking of heading over to the barbeque restaurant for a last meal together before Ushido and his team head back to the Cloud together." Said Kiba as he mounts Akamaru and strokes his sides.

"Are you sure it's fine to be out of the hospital already, Ushido? You looked so worn out the other day." Said Ino as she turned to Ushido to inspect how he was.

"I'm fine, Ino-Chan… the doctors said I made a remarkable recovery so I can leave when I was ready." He smiled to reassure her. "You two wanna join us?" he said as they both look at each other and nod as they all head off to the restaurant.

Once they arrive, they found a nice table and chat about the exam and the amazing fights they had as they ate barbeque together. Jonetsu seems happier since this time she gets to sit next to Ushido and offer to help him eat in case he feels at all tired. Sakura and Ino smile as they notice exactly what's going on with her and laugh to each other as she realises that they've just figured her out. Time seems to go by quickly as they all talk away with each other, sharing stories about previous missions and their team leaders. When they all realised the time, they paid their bill and left. Ushido, Jonetsu and Koken headed back to the inn while the others headed back home.

When they arrive at the inn, they find Darui inside in his usual spot, reading yet another book. You'd swear he never leaves that spot. And what was with all the reading? Ushido chuckles at the sight of his master in his usual spot as he makes his way over to the bedroom door and heads to the bedroom.

"Is he really going to bed already?" said Koken, watching Ushido as he stretched in the room and laid on his bed.

"Don't forget what your fight did to him. He might still be a little tired." Replied Jonetsu as she places her hands on her hips and gives him an annoyed look.

"Heh heh… that's true." He smiled as he scratches the back of his head. Jonetsu simply rolls her eyes and turns to watch Ushido make himself comfy in his bed, falling asleep minutes after. She giggles softly to herself at how peaceful he was as he yawns heavily and decides to call it a night. After a short while Koken decides to call it a night for himself and heads into the bedroom to sleep, leaving Darui by himself in the living room alone with his thoughts.

"_Those kids… I can't wait to see what the future has in store for them. I just hope I can be there by their sides to witness everything they get to do together. Their camaraderie, loyalty and trust in each other is what will send them far in their lives. I can't wait for whatever the future has in store."_ He chuckles as he closes the book and heads off to bed.

The next morning, the group meet at the front gate and say their final goodbyes before setting off back home. Ushido will never forget the bond he forged with Kiba and his group over the past month. A bond he'll never forget.

A few miles out from the village, Darui spots two people heading their way and spot their headbands. On the young blond, a symbol for the Hidden Leaf, and on the old man beside him, it can easily be spotted as the headband as none other than the legendary Jiraiya. He smiles as he waves over and approaches Jiraiya with a warm smile.

"My god… it's an honour to meet you Jirayia-Sama. To think I get to meet one of the Legendary Sannin." He shakes his hand as Jiraiya smiles back and greets him.

"Hey, good to meet a fan heh heh… what brings you guys out here?" he asked as Ushido's attention shifted to the young blond beside Jiraiya and shut them out. He took the time to examine the young man, his spikey blond hair, his blue eyes, and his flashy orange and black jacket. But the main thing that drew his attention was the whiskers on his cheeks. He shrugged it off and approached the young blond.

"Hey there, I'm Ushido. Ushido Shinjo of the Hidden Cloud and these are my teammates Jonetsu Mai and Koken Nihin." He smiled warmly as he extends his hand to shake. The young blond looks at Ushido and gives a great big smile as he accepts and shakes Ushido's hand.

"Hey there, I'm Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki. Pleased to meet you uh…" his face turns blank as he tries to remember the name.

"Ushido, don't worry about it. Have you guys been on a mission? I don't think we saw you at all during our time in the Leaf." He asked as he examines the bag on his back.

"That's true Ushido, but you were off training by yourself the entire time. You can't expect to see everyone in the village when you're off training in solitude." Koken interrupted as Ushido gives an innocent smile.

"Oh yeah… true." He laughs as Koken shakes his head. Naruto's face beams up after hearing them mention The Leaf.

"You guys were in Konoha? How is it? I haven't been there in over a year." He asked, almost jumping in place from excitement.

"It's not all bad. We were in the Chunin exams and you're looking at the winner of the exams, right here buddy!" said Ushido, giving Naruto the thumbs up as Jonetsu and Koken give him an annoyed look.

"Wow… must've been tough, huh? Pervy Sage says I'm not done with training yet so I we can't go back yet. I really can't wait." He said as he begins to jump in place. Koken takes the time to quickly examine as much as he can about Naruto. His kindness, his hyperness, even his entire look match the descriptions they had received from Kiba's group. Could he be the guy they were talking about? He shakes it off as Darui signals them to follow to head off back home. They say their goodbyes to Naruto and set off home.

A couple weeks on the road and they finally return home from their travels. Ushido sighs in content at the sight of the Hidden Cloud as he looks around for any of their classmates to tell them the news. Much to his disappointment, most were on missions while the others hadn't yet returned. Ushido shrugged it off as Darui watches the poor Uchiha's look of disappointment.

"Something wrong, Ushido?" Said Darui, already guessing what was wrong.

"No Sensei, I just… wished I could've shared it with someone before taking it back home." He replies as he looks down and starts to walk away.

"Where are you going Ushido-Kun?" Jonetsu asked with a slightly worried look.

"I'm just gonna go home… see about framing it or whatever." He sighs quietly as he shuffles off through the streets towards home.

"What was wrong with Ushido-Kun?" she asked as she turns to Darui and Koken.

"Don't forget who he is. When he goes home, there'll be no one there to welcome him or congratulate him on his achievement. He wanted to show all our friends so he could have someone feel proud for him. With no parents around, the only people to show are the people who shared the experience, and that's no way to celebrate your achievements." Said Koken as he sighs depressively and places his hands in his pockets. Jonetsu looks back to Ushido; a single tear falls down her cheek as her heart breaks for the young Uchiha. How did she not notice before? Even when he graduated, he didn't show as much happiness as everyone else did. Everything, his first Fireball Jutsu, his activation of the Sharingan… everything he achieved through training, could never be congratulated by proud parents. It was almost enough to make to make her want to fall to her knees and weep for him.

As Ushido arrives home, he opens the door to his empty apartment and looks around. The small, vacant, dust filled space was one thing he hadn't missed at all. The feeling he had of waking up with his teammates each morning for the past two months had been the best thing ever. Sadly, for him, all good things must come to an end. Maybe he could show someone tomorrow if any of them had returned. But alas… he had some cleaning to do. He quickly shrugs the feeling off and begins to work on removing all the dust from the apartment.

As the day dragged on while Ushido sat in his empty apartment, he started to look back on everything he'd done during his time in the Chunin exams. Passing the first test without even answering a single question, beating those Hidden Mist Ninja and taking their scrolls, learning Chidori level two in two weeks and winning the final rounds of the exams, even though it had almost cost him his life. If only he could share it with someone instead of the loneliness of his home. His thoughts are interrupted by a sudden knock on the door. He pulls himself up and shuffles slowly towards the door, dragging his feet along the floor, and slowly pulls it open, only to be surprised by the mysterious visitor. The kind, warm eyes greet him and a warm smile brings some comfort in the young Uchiha's troubled mind.

"May-Chan… what're you doing here?" he asked as she continues to smile at him.

"Well… you didn't seem right so I was wondering if you're hungry." She answered as he chuckles softly and shakes his head.

"Thanks, but… I don't much feel like going out, May-Chan." He replied with a nervous smile. She shakes her head and pulls a bag from behind her back.

"No, no… I brought the food to you. I got us some ramen to eat together, thought I'd keep you company for a while." She smiled again as his heart begins to warm up and his eyes tear up immensely. He tries hard to fight back the tears but is forced to turn his back to her so she doesn't see.

"Th… Thank you, May-Chan. Come in." he gestures her to come in as he tries to wipe the tears away. She sets the bag down on the counter and takes out the ramen to dish out. Ushido watches her as he takes a seat next at the table and clears another space for her. When she finally brings the bowls over, they begin to eat and chat as the night drags on. They laugh together and even share personal things together as they start to feel closer together. After a while, Ushido notices a draft from somewhere as Jonetsu shivers in her seat, hugging herself for warmth. Ushido thinks for a moment and sighs when he realises he needs to take care of her. He switches seats to sit next to her and wraps his arm around her; she blushes as he holds her tightly to warm her up. As she gradually warms up from him, she rests her head into his chest and closes her eyes, hoping she could stay this way for a while. Ushido decides to break the silence to help make himself feel less awkward.

"Thank you for bringing the food, May-Chan. It means a lot. Probably more than you'd ever know." He smiles as he rests his head on hers. "You're a good friend and I'm glad to have you here with me. I don't know what I'd do without you."

Her heart slowly starts racing in her chest as she softly pushes away from him and leans up towards him, gently kissing his cheek then placing her head back into his chest. Ushido blushes slightly from the sudden gesture and smiles as Jonetsu wraps her arms around him.

"I'll always be with you, Ushido-Kun. Always." She whispers as she slowly falls asleep to dream of this moment she hopes that would last forever.

**Nawww… wasn't that a sweet moment between them. I kinda liked that moment myself, being a non-romantic type, that was good for me. Plus it helped with the depressing feeling I got from writing about Ushido's loneliness. So… yeah, please rate and review and I'll see you guys in the next chapter.**

**Btw, I'm gonna clear this now instead of you guys being confused in the next chapter. Chapter 7 will skip ahead about a year ish since there's nothing really happening in Shippuden until then seeing as how Naruto hasn't returned. Yesh, I also made the mistake of forgetting that the Chunin exams started a little after he came back in Shippuden so I made it so they went a year before. So yeah… thanks for reading, hope you come back for chapter 7.**


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